South Africa: Eastern Cape Rock Art Vanishing Due to Vandals

In caves along the Great Kei River and at the confluence of the White (Cacadu) and Black Kei rivers in the rural Eastern Cape, there is a wealth of rock art paintings. They are not well known and they are in danger of disappearing altogether.

The rock paintings (parietal art) stretch back in time from the 19th Century to perhaps 20,000 years ago. "These paintings are the history of our ancestors," says Dr Nomalanga Mkhize, historian and anthropologist at Nelson Mandela University. "Their significance is paramount. These artefacts symbolise a civilization spanning thousands and thousands of years ... They tell San history ... and we can learn from their way of life."

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