TIANSHANNET   ›   News   ›   Xinjiang News

Over 3,000 year-old "graffiti" unveil a mystery of rock art ensemble in NW China’s Xinjiang

Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily (Reporter Bai Sujun) news: On October 18, the first snowfall of this year landed on Wenquan County in Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. With temperatures dropping sharply and the cold biting, Zhu Ping and his colleagues ventured into the snow to conduct an inspection of the ancient tomb complex and rock art ensemble at Adunqiaolu Stone Barrier, located over 40 kilometers away from the county seat.

The Adunqiaolu Stone Barrier ancient tomb complex and rock art ensemble are situated in the winter pasture of Turigen Village, Chagantunge Township, Wenquan County in Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang, in the shallow mountainous region at the southern foot of the Alataw Mountains, approximately 41 kilometers west of Wenquan County.

Photo taken on October 18, 2024 shows Shang Guojun (left) and Zhu Ping (right) measure the volume of the rock art in Wenquan County, Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily/Bai Sujun)

Zhu Ping, a 51-year-old staff member of the Cultural Relics Office at the Culture, Sports, Radio, Television, and Tourism Bureau of Wenquan County, conducts inspections of cultural relics within her jurisdiction every month. "Conducting inspections of cultural relics is part of our routine duties. In case of abnormal weather, cultural relics and protective fence facilities are particularly susceptible to damage, making inspections extremely necessary," said Zhu Ping.

Shang Guojun, who has been engaged in cultural relic protection for 36 years and is highly experienced, joined the inspection. They first checked the protective signboards, surrounding fences, and other facilities around the rock art ensemble, tomb complex, and site complex, and found everything to be in normal condition. Subsequently, the two began inspecting and recording key rock arts in the east, south, west, and north directions. Shang Guojun first wiped away the snowflakes on the rock arts, then used equipment to measure, locate, and photograph them, while Zhu Ping was responsible for field recording. Finally, the two carefully observed the erosion caused by moss, wind, and snow on the surface of the rock arts.

At 12 o’clock on the same day, the snowfall gradually weakened, and the sun rose, making the covered rock arts gradually visible. The contents depicted on them are diverse, featuring animals such as cows, sheep, horses, and deer standing still or running, displaying a myriad of poses. In the hunting scenes, ancients are seen chasing prey with bows and arrows in hand; in the pastoral scenes, flocks of cows and sheep are grazing leisurely. The images include tense confrontations between wolves and sheep, as well as shepherds riding horses and galloping across the land.

Photo taken on October 18, 2024 shows Shang Guojun (left) and Zhu Ping (right) measure the dimensions of the animals on the rock art in Wenquan County, Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily/Bai Sujun)

"These rock arts are the 'graffiti' works of ancients dating back over 3,000 years. They were discovered during the second and third national cultural relic censuses since 1988, all etched on granite surfaces, with images of ibexes and deer being the most common. Some rock arts have been damaged due to natural weathering, expansion, cracking, and erosion by organisms such as moss," said Shang Guojun. Due to differences in historical periods and geographical locations, the etching techniques and styles of the rock arts vary. These rock arts provide precious graphical information for us to understand the lives of ancients.

In 2013, the Adunqiaolu Stone Barrier ancient tomb complex and rock art ensemble were listed as the seventh batch of major historical and cultural sites protected at the national level.

So, who carved these rock arts? Why did the ancients carve them? What tools did they use for carving? Zhang Tienan, a former researcher at the Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, has unveiled the answers for us.

According to Zhang Tienan, the numerous rock arts discovered locally are all etched on the surfaces of granite. The patterns on them reflect the living environment and processes of hunting and herding of ancients.

"Based on the dating of artifacts unearthed from the Adunqiaolu Stone Barrier ancient tomb complex and rock art ensemble, it has been found that these rock arts date back to the 17th to 19th centuries BC, roughly 3,700 to 3,900 years ago, belonging to the early Bronze Age cultural relics," said Zhang Tienan. The excavation of the Adunqiaolu Stone Barrier ancient tomb complex and rock art ensemble is of great significance as it confirms for the first time in China’s Xinjiang the correlation between the Bronze Age sites and tombs. The artifacts unearthed are crucial in determining the cultural nature of the site, providing people with an accurate understanding of the ancient culture in the Bortala River basin.

Photo taken on October 18, 2024 shows Shang Guojun introduces the patterns on the stone tomb in Wenquan County, Bortala Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Photo by Shiliuyun-Xinjiang Daily/Bai Sujun)

Regarding why ancients carved on rocks, Zhang Tienan explained that it was a way for ancients to record their lives, express their beliefs and worship, engage in social interactions, and transmit information. In particular, rock arts in specific areas may be marks left by a certain ethnic group or tribe. "Based on the content of the rock arts, we can judge that the ancients used stones as tools and employed three techniques of percussion, chiseling, and grinding to carve them. This indicates that humans lived and resided here at that time," said Zhang Tienan. These rock arts provide rich and valuable graphical information for historical research and play an important role in understanding the development of ancient civilizations.

(A written permission shall be obtained for reprinting, excerpting, copying and mirroring of the contents published on this website. Unauthorized aforementioned act shall be deemed an infringement, of which the actor shall be held accountable under the law.)