San rock paintings, scattered over the range of southern Africa, are considered by many to be the very earliest examples of representational art. There are as many as 15,000 known rock art sites, created over the course of thousands of years up until the nineteenth century. There are possibly just as many still awaiting discovery. Taking as his starting point the magnificent Linton panel in the Iziko-South African Museum in Cape Town, J. D. Lewis-Williams examines the artistic and cultural significance of rock art and how this art sheds light on how San image-makers conceived their world. It also details the European encounter with rock art as well as the contentious European interaction with the artists’ descendants, the contemporary San people.

Contains more than two hundred photographs of Africa's rock art, coupled with historical and interpretive analyses, compiled to raise public awareness of the variety, importance, and frailty of these works.

Seminar paper from the year 2001 in the subject Art - Painting, grade: 1 (A), Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (Faculty of Arts), course: Course: South African Archaeology and Ethno-history (SA 301), 9 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: One aspect of the wealth of material evidence left behind by the early people are the pictures in south african rock art. They occur in paintings and engravings. In 1996 the total number of sites in South Africa was estimated to be a little over 10 000 but the actual number of sites is significantly undercounted. It is still not known exactly when the artists started to make rock art, although new techniques of radiocarbon dating, using very small samples of paint, open the possibility of an absolute chronology. The oldest example of rock art in Africa was found in 1969 by Eric Wendt in the southern region of Namibia at a site called Apollo 11. After various datings, mainly with the radiocarbon method, archaeologists concluded that the rock art tradition in southern africa is at least 27 500 years old. In South Africa the oldest dated rock art is an engraving in the Northern Cape which was found on a small slab of dolomite at the Wonderwerk Cave south of Kuruman. It has a radiocarbon date of c.10 200 BP. Rock paintings are found in the mountainous parts of the subcontinent in abundant rock shelters and shallow overhangs, while engravings were generally made on the interior plateau of South Africa. There are about 1600 paintings in South Africa. In this assignment I will focus on the meaning of rock paintings, on the specific symbols and their importance for the early people. In Chapter Two, I provide a short introduction about the artists and their methods. Then I will explain the three important approaches to reveal the meaning of rock art described by Lewis - Williams and give some examples of misinterpretations of rock paintings. Chapter Three deals with the spiritual world and shamanism in the society

Rock art has long been considered an archaeological artifact reflecting activities from the past, yet it is also a phenomenon with present-day meaning and relevance to both indigenous and non-indigenous communities. Relating to Rock Art in the Contemporary World challenges traditional ways of thinking about this highly recognizable form of visual heritage and provides insight into its contemporary significance. One of the most visually striking forms of material culture embedded in landscapes, rock art is ascribed different meanings by diverse groups of people including indigenous peoples, governments, tourism offices, and the general public, all of whom relate to images and sites in unique ways. In this volume, leading scholars from around the globe shift the discourse from a primarily archaeological basis to one that examines the myriad ways that symbolism, meaning, and significance in rock art are being renegotiated in various geographical and cultural settings, from Australia to the British Isles. They also consider how people manage the complex meanings, emotions, and cultural and political practices tied to rock art sites and how these factors impact processes relating to identity construction and reaffirmation today. Richly illustrated and geographically diverse, Relating to Rock Art in the Contemporary World connects archaeology, anthropology, and heritage studies. The book will appeal to students and scholars of archaeology, anthropology, heritage, heritage management, identity studies, art history, indigenous studies, and visual theory, as well as professionals and amateurs who have vested or avocational interests in rock art. Contributors: Agustín Acevedo, Manuel Bea, Jutinach Bowonsachoti, Gemma Boyle, John J. Bradley, Noelene Cole, Inés Domingo, Kurt E. Dongoske, Davida Eisenberg-Degen, Dánae Fiore, Ursula K. Frederick, Kelley Hays-Gilpin, Catherine Namono, George H. Nash, John Norder, Marianna Ocampo, Joshua Schmidt, Duangpond Singhaseni, Benjamin W. Smith, Atthasit Sukkham, Noel Hidalgo Tan, Watinee Tanompolkrang, Luke Taylor, Dagmara Zawadzka

Bushman Rock Art is the first of its kind. Never before has rock art been so dissected and presented in such an easy-to-understand, interpretive manner, exploring the deep symbolic meaning behind the art and what these powerful images meant to Bushman artists.

The cornerstone of current understanding of rock art of the San of Drakensberg First published in 1976, People of the Eland was the first major step away from the outsider's view upon San rock art that had dominated studies of rock art for nearly a century. The book, an account of the rock art of the San of the Drakensberg Range, was also about the mountain San themselves: their lives, their beliefs, their culture and their history during colonisation. The book not only brought an extraordinary and dynamic body of art to the attention of a global audience, but also helped to lay the foundations for a new generation of research into the meaning of prehistoric art. People of the Eland aimed to gain an insider's view of the rock art using San understandings of the world. While following this approach, it quickly became clear to Vinnicombe that the art was very far from simple depictions of daily life as had once seemed likely, but instead reflected the most deeply held San beliefs and symbols. This approach and this understanding has now become the standard for all those working with San rock art. Whilst this early knowledge of San art has been built upon considerably since 1976, People of the Eland remains a cornerstone of our current understanding. Reprinted here in full color, with the original artwork and photographs, People of the Eland remains a seminal work, the impact of which cannot be underestimated.

This unique volume demonstrates that there are archaeological and anthropological ways of accessing the past in order to investigate and explain the significance of rock art motifs, and highlights the importance of regional rock art studies and regional variations.