Sandia mountain range, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA by David Whited Image: Sandia mountain range, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Sandia mountain range, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
  • David Whited
  • Sandia mountain range, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
  • Digital photography
  • Inv: PH-1230
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Sandía means watermelon in Spanish, and is popularly believed to be a reference to the reddish color of the mountains at sunset. Also, when viewed from the west, the profile of the mountains is a long ridge, with a thin zone of green conifers near the top, suggesting the "rind" of the watermelon. However, as Robert Julyan notes, "the most likely explanation is the one believed by the Sandia Indians: the Spaniards, when they encountered the Pueblo in 1540, called it Sandia, because they thought the squash gourds growing there were watermelons, and the name Sandia soon was transferred to the mountains east of the pueblo."

Other Work From David Whited

Kiwanis Cabin located atop the Sandia Crest in New Mexico, USA by David Whited
Albuquerque from the Sandia Mountains, New Mexico, USA by David Whited
Lesser goldfinch, Albuquerque, New Mexico by David Whited
Glossy Ibis, Audubon Rookery, Venice, Florida, ISA by David Whited
Male wood duck, Red Bug Slough, Florida, USA by David Whited
Little Blue Heron, State College of Florida Campus, USA by David Whited
Black-and-white warbler, MaGee Marsh, Ohio, USA by David Whited
Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Edenburg Scenic Wetlands, Texas, USA by David Whited
Blue-winged Teal, Celery Fields Park, Florida, USA by David Whited
Brown-hooded Kingfisher, South Africa by David Whited
See all artwork from David Whited