Spider Rock - Canyon De Chelly Arizona - This photograph was taken at the base of Spider Rock, as this spire stands 830 feet tall, the trees at the base provide scale. The majority of the rock has the signature red color of the sandstone of the southwest.
This sacred place of the Navajo is the lair of the mythical Spider Woman (Na'ashje'ii Asdzaa). In the story of the Third World, Spider Woman descended to the top of Spider Rock. From here she spun her silken web and draped it to the ground. She lived in a crack between the two rocks and came out every day, snaring naughty children, and snatching them up to eat. Other variations of the legend tell that it was Spider Woman who taught her people the fine art of weaving.
