Prehistoric painted rock art discovered in Sichuan province

A rock art joint investigation team, organized by the China Rock Art Center of Minzu University of China, the Haizishan Nature Reserve Management Committee of Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture, and the People's Government of Litang County, carried out a five-day on-site inspection of prehistoric rock art in the Haizishan - Genie region from June 21 to the 26.

Based on previous preliminary surveys, six prehistoric painted rock art sites were discovered within an area of 1,800 square kilometers in the high-altitude wilderness, grasslands, wetlands and valley regions of the Haizishan - Genie area. The discovered rock art was photographed on-site, and geographic information was collected along with records of topography, landforms and vegetation distribution.

Among the six painted rock art sites discovered and confirmed during this inspection, five are located at altitudes above 4,600 meters, with only one located in a valley at an altitude of 3,700 meters. The rock paintings were all made with red pigment and the designs include big-horned deer, mountain goats, anthropomorphic figures carrying objects and beast paw prints.

Professor Zhang Yasha of the China Rock Art Center, upon seeing the on-site pictures, said: "Rock art is a trace left by humans from the prehistoric hunting period and is one of the earliest conscious creations by humans. The newly discovered rock art in the Haizishan region, considering the themes, image sizes, pattern features and painting techniques, demonstrates many stylistic characteristics of prehistoric rock art and might be related to the unique Paleolithic rock art group in Southwest China. The Haizishan rock art is the first of its type discovered in Sichuan province and is relatively ancient compared to the rock art discovered on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau over the years, which updates our understanding of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau rock art. "