Petroglyphic Complexes of the Mongolian Altai

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Exploring the Petroglyphic Complexes of the Mongolian Altai: A Journey Through Time

The Petroglyphic Complexes of the Mongolian Altai, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, offer a unique glimpse into the rich cultural history of Mongolia that spans over 12,000 years. These complexes, located within the vast and majestic Altai Mountains, consist of numerous rock carvings and funerary monuments that provide valuable insights into the evolution of human societies in northern Asia.

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UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site

The numerous rock carvings and funerary monuments found in these three sites illustrate the development of culture in Mongolia over a period of 12,000 years. The earliest images reflect a time (11,000 - 6,000 BC) when the area was partly forested and the valley provided a habitat for hunters of large game. Later images show the transition to herding as the dominant way of life. The most recent images show the transition to a horse-dependent nomadic lifestyle during the early 1st millennium BC, the Scythian period and the later Turkic period (7th and 8th centuries AD). The carvings contribute valuably to our understanding of pre-historic communities in northern Asia.

Encyclopedia Record: Altai Mountains

The Altai Mountains are a mountain range in Central Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan converge, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob have their headwaters. The highest summit of the range is Belukha, whose summit reaches 4,506 m above sea level. The massif merges with the Sayan Mountains in the northeast, and gradually becomes lower in the southeast, where it merges into the high plateau of the Gobi Desert. In the southwest, it is separated from the higher Tian Shan range by the Junggar Basin. It spans from about 45° to 52° N and from about 84° to 99° E.

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