D49-1(S)–Church Rock, near Lisbon Valley, SE Utah
Church Rock is a unique sandstone formation located a few miles north of Monticello in southeast Utah. It’s a local icon of sorts, readily visible just off the highway. In 1998, I was commissioned by a local museum to photograph old barns in San Juan County, Utah, and Church Rock was on the list. In the 1940s, the land owner used dynamite to hollow-out a section at the base to use for storage for cattle feed. Visible in this image are the remnants of an old corral and a dilapidated windmill to show the scale of the rock formation, which rises 200 feet above the surrounding desert landscape. The weather the day this image was made was windy and the clouds were magnificent and added texture and contrast to the earthy tones of Church Rock. As for its name, the local myth is that in the 1930s a spiritualist and her small cult deemed San Juan County, Utah and Church Rock to be the spiritual center of the universe, and she ordered the complete hollowing-out of Church Rock to serve as her church. The 16’x24′ hollow section was thought to be proof of this but was proven false. (Canon gear, Fuji Velvia ISO 50)