Mystery of Millennia-Old Rock Art Uncovered in China’s Altai Mountains

Scientists used modern hyperspectral scanning technology to study ancient rock art located in the Altai region of southwestern China.

As a result of the research, images that had faded over time and become almost invisible were restored, revealing new information about the region’s centuries-old history.

The research was carried out at the Tangbalytasy site in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Its name is said to mean “stone with markings” in an ancient Turkic language.

The site consists of two caves. Nineteen images were documented in the first cave, while 51 compositions depicting horned people and animals were found in the second.

High-sensitivity scanning also revealed two additional faded images that had previously been impossible to distinguish.

The oldest drawings in the caves date back to the third millennium BC and are associated with the Chemurchek culture, while most of the other images belong to the Bronze Age.

One image that particularly attracted researchers’ attention depicts a bearded, three-eyed man with rays emerging from his head. Similar figures, which are frequently found in Central Asia and southern Siberia, are associated with shamanic rituals.

Scenes showing groups of horned people dancing on the rocks also suggest that religious ceremonies were widespread during that period.

According to historical information, the caves were later used as a sacred site by followers of Tibetan Buddhism during the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368).

Tibetan inscriptions and religious symbols found inside the caves provide evidence of this later use.

The multi-layered structure of the overlapping rock art shows that peoples from different eras regarded the site as sacred and left behind their own cultural and religious traces.