A sandstone rock face in Arches National Park preserves a layered record of people passing through this desert landscape. Names were carved into its dark desert varnish over time, with the most important inscription left by French-American trapper Denis Julien on June 9, 1844. Because it is dated, his carving is the earliest and most historically significant mark on the panel. Prehistoric petroglyphs at the site place Julien’s inscription within a much longer tradition of human marking and interpreting the landscape. Most other signatures were added after 1900, showing that the site continued to draw visitors long after the fur-trade era.