The Soldier Ghaut petroglyphs are a group of carvings on rock walls in a seasonal streambed in

Montserrat Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with r ...

discovered by hikers in 2016 and 2018. The carvings are believed to be between 1000 and 1500 years old and are the first known petroglyphs on the island or its nearest neighbor, Antigua.

Discovery

In 2016, nine

petroglyphs A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

were discovered on the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc betwe ...

island of Montserrat by local residents, including local politician

Shirley Osborne Shirley Osborne is a politician in Montserrat. She was Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Montserrat between September 2014 and October 2019. She is the daughter of the late John Osborne, a former Chief Minister of Montserrat. Osborne trained ...

, hiking in a wooded area near Soldier Ghaut (a seasonal streambed) in the northwest area of the island. Another petroglyph was discovered in 2018 on the other side of the streambed. The carvings are believed to be between 1000 and1500 years old and are the first known petroglyphs on the island or its nearest neighbor,

Antigua Antigua ( ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Bar ...

Characteristics

The main body of petroglyphs, on the right-hand side of the streambed, consists of 9 elements covering area measuring (horizontally) by (vertically). They are divided into two groupings and separated by a horizontal bar. The carving on the left-hand side of the streambed depicts a face measuring square. The size of the petroglyphs is " some-what larger than the norm in Caribbean rock art".

Research

A research team consisting of archeologists from the US,

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

, and Montserrat were invited by the

Montserrat National Trust Montserrat ( ) is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about long and wide, with roughly of coastline. It is ...

to study and measure the petroglyphs and create a plan for preservation and public access.

References

{{Reflist Petroglyphs Montserrat 2016 archaeological discoveries