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So-called because it is thought to have served to record events.
From the park panel:
"Drawings, called petroglyphs, pecked into these rocks allow a glimpse of the life and world of the people who farmed the Peurco River valley 650 to 2000 years ago. More than 650 rock art designs—the largest concentration in Petrified Forest National Park—adorn the boulders that tumbled to rest below these cliffs.
The dark coating on the rock, called desert varnish, presented an inviting opportunity for creativity. Ancient artists produced many types of figures and patterns by carefully pecking the coated rock surfaces with sharpened tools to remove the desert varnish and expose the lighter rock beneath."
We don't know what the petroglyphs mean.
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