Rock Paintings of Helan Mountains
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 | |
 Interactive map of Petroglyphs of Helan Mountains | |
| Location | Helanshan, Ningxia |
|---|---|
| History | |
| Periods | Neolithic to Western Xia[1] |
| Site notes | |
| Discovered | 5th century AD[2] |
Rock Paintings of Helan Mountains (simplified Chinese: 贺兰山岩画; traditional Chinese: 賀蘭山岩畫; pinyin: Hèlánshān Yánhuà), also known as Helanshan Rock Art,[3] are images carved into the rocks of Helan Mountains, Ningxia.[4]
Helanshan Rock Art is representative of rock paintings in northern China, with rich and concentrated subject matter. As of December 2020, tens of thousands of petroglyphs have been discovered,[5] and they were created between 10,000 and 3,000 years ago.[6]
The Helanshan Rock Art was first discovered by Li Daoyuan, a geographer of the Northern Wei dynasty, in the 5th century AD in Commentary on the Water Classic.[7] In modern times, it was rediscovered by Li Xiangshi (李祥石)[8] in 1969.[9]
The truly comprehensive and systematic studies and findings of Helanshan Rock Art have been made since China's reform and opening up.[10]
Creation periods
The creation periods of Helanshan Rock Art can be roughly divided into three stages, the first stage is the Neolithic,[11] the second stage is from the Qin dynasty to the Northern and Southern dynasties, and the third stage is from the Sui dynasty to the Western Xia.[12]
