Looking to the Stars offers an historical and mythological exploration of Navajo star ceilings—cruciform pictographs representing the night sky found on cliff overhangs and cave ceilings throughout the Four Corners region of the American Southwest. These sacred artworks, created centuries ago, continue to speak through symbol, placement, and enduring cultural meaning.
Blending Spanish historical records with Navajo mythic interpretation, the book traces how early encounters, colonial power, and Indigenous cosmology intersected in the creation and understanding of these images. Drawing from some of the earliest European accounts of star ceilings alongside Navajo cultural perspectives, the work examines themes of protection, spiritual presence, and the boundaries between worlds.
Part sourcebook and part meditation, Looking to the Stars invites readers into a careful, respectful engagement with these extraordinary works of sacred art. It seeks to honor Navajo history and meaning while offering insight into how myth, landscape, and human experience converge beneath the night sky.

About the Author

Tom Christian, PhD, is a humanities scholar, Registered Professional Archaeologist, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and U.S. Navy veteran. He is the founder of De Chelly Archaeology and Preservation, PBC, a public benefit corporation dedicated to advancing education, innovative research, and public engagement with history and archaeology. His interdisciplinary work bridges archaeology, cultural history, and human experience, with a focus on honoring Native American knowledge systems and material culture. Christian’s scholarship emphasizes careful interpretation, ethical research, and respectful engagement with the past.