The Earliest Rock Paintings of the Central Sahara: Approaching Interpretation

The Central Sahara, particularly the Tassili n'Ajjer region, harbors some of the world's richest collections of ancient rock paintings and engravings, with the earliest likely dating back to the 10th millennium BP. These early depictions, known as 'Round Heads' due to their distinctive circular head shapes, were created by dark-skinned hunter-gatherers in the mountains of Tassili n'Ajjer and adjacent regions. Despite being discovered in the 1950s, these paintings had previously been considered uninterpretable. A recent study challenges this notion by employing archaeological evidence, landscape archaeology, and comparative studies to reveal a complex underlying reality behind individual painted images. This approach offers new insights into Saharan rock-art studies, moving beyond mere description to interpretative analysis.

Soukopova, J. (2011). The Earliest Rock Paintings of the Central Sahara: Approaching Interpretation. Time and Mind, 4(2), 193–216. https://doi.org/10.2752/175169711x12961583765333