Scope

Rock shelter in lower cliff on end of promontory, 4m N of GRA169 close to modern settlement. Carvings in several clusters on walls and roof of shelter.

Arrangement

Bull, three cows, rhinoceros, four giraffe, antelope (reedbuck?), two bovids, three quadrupeds, indeterminate, abstract (and spears), inscriptions, cupmarks, incised lines: Cluster of carvings on back wall of shelter: Incised outline of bull facing right with upward then inward curving horns making circle. Below right are faint incised indeterminate images, possibly animals. Left and above are incised Libyan and Arabic inscriptions, one painted Libyan inscription, and incised abstract rectilinear images. Above are eroded pecked outlines of a cow facing right with upward curving horns and, to the left, a quadruped facing right. Several incised and eroded Libyan inscriptions above these images. A second cluster of images further to the right comprises pecked and eroded outline of a bovid facing right with short upward pointing horns, and incised eroded outline of a cow facing right with upward then inward curving horns. Incised Libyan inscriptions and abstract rectilinear shape. Modern knife blade stuck in crevice. On roof of shelter are several incised Libyan inscriptions, and two superimposed animals (illustrated). The underlying image is incised outline of a probable rhinoceros facing right with elongated head with horns and ears, legs and feet well defined. Body lines reused and partly obscured by superimposed incised outline of giraffe facing right with long neck and short upward pointing horns or ears. Shoulder, dorsal line and hind leg of giraffe reuse dorsal line of rhinoceros. Below is a row of lightly incised spear symbols and a cluster of pecked and gouged cupmarks. To the right of these are incised and eroded outlines of two giraffes facing right with long necks and short upward pointing horns or ears. Below these images, on the N wall of the rock shelter several animal images, some superimposed, and numerous short incisions or notches in rows along on protruding rock edges. On the far right of this cluster is incised outline of quadruped facing right with long tail. To the left is lightly incised outline of gazelle facing right with backward then upward curving horns, possibly a reedbuck, and several incised lines of indeterminate images. Below is incised outline of giraffe facing right with long neck, short upward pointing ears or horns, lines on hide and across neck, and short incised lines along neck and back possibly depicting mane. To left is incised outline of bovid facing right with upward pointing horns and lines on hide. Left of this images are incised outlines of necks and heads of two giraffe facing right, with short upward pointing horns or ears. Bodies are partly obscured by superimposed deeply incised outline of cow facing right with upward pointing horns. Numerous lines on hide and below belly, some or all of which may be remnants of earlier images. To left is incised outline of quadruped facing right with long tail, head partly obscured by cow.

Biographical history

Deposited with the Society for Libyan Studies Online Archive by Tertia Barnett in 2019