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| ROCK ART IN AFRICA: World Heritage |
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Twyfelfontein
or /Ui-//aes (Namibia)
Date of Inscription:
2007
Criteria: (iii) (v)
Core zone: 57.4269 ha
Buffer zone: 9194.4828 ha
Kunene Region
S20 35 44.1 E14 22 21.3
Brief Description
Twyfelfontein or /Ui-//aes
has one of the largest concentrations of rock petroglyphs
(engravings) in Africa. Most of these well-preserved
engravings represent rhinoceros, elephant, ostrich
and giraffe, as well as drawings of human and animal
footprints. The site also includes six painted rock
shelters with motifs of human figures in red ochre.
The objects excavated from two sections, date from
the Late Stone Age. The site forms a coherent, extensive
and high-quality record of ritual practices relating
to hunter-gatherer communities in this part of southern
Africa over at least 2,000 years, and eloquently illustrates
the links between the ritual and economic practices
of hunter-gatherers.
Outstanding Universal Value
The rock art forms a coherent,
extensive and high quality record of ritual practices
relating to hunter-gather communities in this part
of southern Africa over at least two millennia and,
eloquently reflects the links between ritual and
economic practices of hunter-gatherers in terms
of the value of reliable water sources in nurturing
communities on a seasonal basis.
Criterion (iii): The rock art engravings and paintings
in Twyfelfontein form a coherent, extensive and
high quality record of ritual practices relating
to hunter-gather communities in this part of southern
Africa over at least two millennia.
Criterion (v): The rock art reflects links between
ritual and economic practices in the apparent sacred
association of the land adjacent to an aquifer as
a reflection of its role in nurturing hunter-gather
communities over many millennia.
The integrity of the property is generally intact.
The Twyfelfontein Country Lodge was permitted by
the Conservancy in 1999/2000 within the Seremonienplatz
rock engraving site in the buffer zone. This has
severely compromised the integrity of the rock engravings
in this area.
All the rock engravings and rock paintings within
the core area are without doubt the authentic work
of San hunter-gatherers who lived in the region
long before the influx of Damara herders and European
colonists. The setting of the Twyfelfontein rock
art is also authentic as other than one small engraved
panel which was removed to the National Museum in
Windhoek in the early part of the 20th century,
no panels have been moved or re-arranged.
The core area was designated a national monument
in 1948 and is now protected by the National Heritage
Act 2004. A buffer zone has been established and
proclaimed. The overall state of conservation of
the property has improved over the past few years,
particularly in terms of the way visitors are managed.
Implementation of the Management plan began in 2005.
>> Download
the Advisory Board
evaluation (3.5mb)
Information
courtesy of UNESCO
WHC
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