The Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape () is an extensive assembly of historical rock art that were painted on limestone cliff faces in Guangxi, southern China. The paintings are located on the west bank of the

Ming River The Ming River, also formerly known as the Qin, Qianbu, and Nanyi River, is a tributary of the Ziya River in Hebei, China. History The river gave its name to Imperial China's Ming Prefecture and to its capital Mingzhou, now Guangfu. During the ...

() which is a tributary of the

Zuo River The Zuo River (, vi, Tả Giang) is a river of Guangxi, China. It begins from the confluence of the Bằng River and Kỳ Cùng River near Longzhou and joins the You River ("Right River") near Nanning to form the Yong River. These rivers form ...

.Guo Hong, Han Rubin, Huang Huaiwu, Lan Riyong, and Xie Riwa
Types of Weathering of the Huashan Rock Paintings
in: Agnew, Neville, ed., ''Conservation of Ancient Sites on the Silk Road: Proceedings of the Second International Conference on the Conservation of Grotto Sites, Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, People's Republic of China'', June 28-July 3, 2004. Los Angeles: The Getty Conservation Institute, 2010. Archived fro
original
/ref> The area of the paintings is part of the Nonggang Nature Reserve and belongs to

Ningming County Ningming County (, za, Ningzmingz Yen) is a county in southwestern Guangxi, China. It is famous for being home to the Hua mountain rock paintings World Heritage Site. A diverse range of languages and dialects are spoken alongside Mandarin Chines ...

. On July 15, 2016, Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape was listed as the 49th

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

in China. The main painted area along the cliff has a width of about and a height of about "The Rock Painting of the Mountain Huashan - UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List"
Archived fro
original
/ref> and is one of the largest rock paintings in China. The paintings are located between and above the river's water level. The main area contains about 1900 discrete countable images arranged in about 110 groups. The paintings have a red color and were executed using a mixture of

red ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...

( hematite), animal glue, and blood. They depict human figures as well as animals along with bronze drums, knives, swords, bells, and ships. Human figures are typically between and tall, but one figure reaches in height. The painting's were originally thought to date from the period around the 5th century BCE, to the

2nd century The 2nd century is the period from 101 ( CI) through 200 ( CC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. Early in the century, the Roman Empire attained its greatest e ...

CE. However, recent carbon dating suggests that the oldest paintings were executed around 16,000 years ago. Whereas the youngest are around 690 years old. The period of their creations spans the times from the

Warring States period The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

to the late

Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

in the history of China. Many of the paintings are thought to "illustrate the life and rituals" of the ancient Luo Yue people, who inhabited the valley of Zuo River during this period and are believed to be ancestors of

Zhuang people The Zhuang (; ; za, Bouxcuengh, italic=yes; ) are a Tai-speaking ethnic group who mostly live in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in Southern China. Some also live in the Yunnan, Guangdong, Guizhou, and Hunan provinces. They form one of ...

, Muong people and Kinh people. An exhibition in the Zhuang Nationality Museum in the City of

Chongzuo Chongzuo (; za, Cungzcoj) is a prefecture-level city in the south of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region near the Sino-Vietnamese border. It is home to one of China's largest Zhuang populations. Geography and climate Chongzuo is located in sout ...

() is dedicated to the history and interpretation of the paintings.

References

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External links

The Rock Art of Huashan - Sacred Meeting Place for Sky, Water & Earth

UNESCO UHC: Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape
World Heritage Sites in China Geography of Guangxi Rock art in China Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Guangxi