Petrified Forest National Park is home to an extensive collection of beautiful petrified wood. It lies in eastern Arizona, high on the Colorado Plateau near its southern edge. The park was named for the extraordinary collection of petrified wood in the area, and was created to preserve some of the fossils and rocks before looters and thieves could empty the area decades ago. The park also protects the Painted Desert, colorful hills that have eroded down as part of the Chinle Formation of sedimentary rock. Many ancient native Indian pueblos and homes are also protected within the park's borders.