description Qurta Petroglyphs Overview
The Qurta petroglyphs are a series of rock engravings located on the east bank of the Nile River near Edfu in Upper Egypt. Discovered in 2005, the site features large-scale carvings of wild cattle, birds, and hippopotamuses. Using optically stimulated luminescence, researchers dated the quartz artifacts and rock carvings to the Late Paleolithic period, approximately 15,000 years ago. These engravings represent some of the oldest known rock art in Africa and provide significant anthropological data on early human societies in the Nile Valley.
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Qurta Petroglyphs ranks #57 of 164 in the Petroglyph ranking, behind Rochester Creek Petroglyph Panel, ahead of Jeffers Petroglyphs.
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How old are the Qurta petroglyphs?
Researchers have argued that some Qurta engravings are roughly 15,000 years old, placing them in the late Pleistocene. That proposed age makes them among the oldest known representational artworks in North Africa.
What animals are carved at Qurta?
Wild cattle, particularly aurochs, are the dominant subjects. The panels also contain other animals and were pecked or incised into sandstone cliffs overlooking the Nile valley.
Where is the Qurta rock art site?
Qurta lies near Edfu in Upper Egypt, along the eastern side of the Nile. Archaeologists documented its major rock-art localities in 2005.
Why is Qurta compared with European Ice Age cave art?
Its large naturalistic animals resemble the subject matter and style of Upper Paleolithic art at places such as Lascaux. The comparison is stylistic, however, and Qurta belongs to its own northeastern African archaeological setting.
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