Mobile and settled: The Petroglyphs of Helankou, Ningxia, Western China

Abstract

The Helankou petroglyphs are concentrated on the cliffs and boulders near the entrance of a mountain gorge in the Helanshan range of Ningxia. A few motifs are found also deeper inside the gorge. The Helankou imagery includes presumed faces (a design that connects this site with the ‘face’ tradition of Inner Mongolia and inner Asia), ‘animals’ and inscriptions that reference Buddhism. Based on style and iconography the Helankou rock art has generally been interpreted as the timeless production of inner Asian pastoral nomads, who in their perennial conflict with the settled world were roaming the northern Chinese border zone. However, the different amount of weathering and the diversity of the motifs, interpreted in light of historical and archaeological evidence, indicate that these petroglyphs were produced over an extended period of time by a variety of different ethnic groups that interacted in the area.

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