The Great Basin is a closed drainage and has no outflow, located in the western United States, centered in Nevada but stretching out to many of the neighboring states. This region is often labeled barren and unworthy to sustain human existence, despite the fact that many Native American groups survived and even thrived. When we think about archaeology from this area we usually don’t think about art. If we do it is in the form of rock art, of which there is plenty, but there is another type that commonly gets overlooked, portable art. There are basically three forms of these small creative artifacts: ceramic figurines, incised stones, and small rocks that have had their shape altered into what is believed to mimic some type of anthropomorphic animal. It is this last category that this discussion will focus on. I propose some of these objects may have been misidentified and present an alternative hypothesis, with related evidence for consideration. This study examines three effigies, two of these are possibly grasshoppers and the third of a predaceous diving beetle. A larger implication of this research is adding to the current dialog of insects in subsistence strategies by ancient cultures around the world and more specifically in the Great Basin of North America. The importance of these food resources may then be transferred and reflected in these portable art objects, which provides additional evidence of their significance.
