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REVIEW BY GEORGE NASH
If I had been asked a few months ago what I knew about a vast rock-art assemblage in Tibet, I would have simply shrugged my shoulders and asked what, when, where, and why. But then, thinking about it further, there are significant prehistoric rock-art assemblages in northern India, southern China, and Mongolia, and across much of the Malaysian Peninsula. Within these regions, imagery includes animals, human figures, and abstract and geometric motifs, similar to those found within the Tibetan Plateau.
The techniques used outside Tibet are mainly engravings, but paintings are also present. In terms of dating, rock art from these areas is considered some of the oldest in the world, with painted imagery found in the caves of Borneo and Sulawesi dating to at least 40,000 BP. Therefore, Tibet sits within an area of south-east Asia that boasts a rich prehistoric rock-art tradition.
John Vincent Belleza’s opening publication for A Comprehensive Survey of Rock Art in Upper Tibet is one of five volumes that cover the Upper Tibetan Plateau (note: Volume 2 has also recently been published – Central and Western Bang thang). The fieldwork for this enormous project was undertaken by the author between 1995 and 2016.
Volume 1 is organised into four sections, with supporting bibliography and a catalogue of images. The book is focused on painted imagery that includes representative and stylised animals, such as birds, cervids, horses, and wild yak that has been made using iron-oxide-based pigments. Both representative and abstract motifs occur as block and outline figures. Human figures are present, too, sometimes depicted as archers, horse riders, and shamans. These figures are usually engaged in wider scenes that sometimes involve superimposition. The abstract and geometric motifs are probably the most curious of the Tibetan assemblage, comprising various designs based on the swastika. The majority of the sites date from the Bronze Age to the Early Historic and Modern Periods.
Although I regard this book as a catalogue, whereby the author has provided a list of sites (with useful descriptions and detailed locations that are incorporated into an easy-to-follow classification system), there is an excellent contextual introduction to what prehistoric rock art in Tibet represents – much of it is arguably associated with symbolic activity – along with detailed discussions on landscapes, the various rock-art styles used, and the condition of the panels in terms of conservation.
This book, along with the four other sister-volumes will provide future generations of researchers with a comprehensive database to work with, especially those undertaking fieldwork in neighbouring southern China and northern India. The book is lavishly illustrated throughout, providing the reader with an excellent insight into the style and technique of each of the 29 sites surveyed. In terms of methodology and dissemination, Bellezza has laid the foundations of how a fieldwork project such as this should be published.
A Comprehensive Survey of Rock Art in Upper Tibet – Volume I: Eastern Byang thang
John Vincent Bellezza
Archaeopress, £95 (open access e-book available)
ISBN 978-1803275031
