Photo Gallery

249 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - The famous slabs, known since 1847 and whose depiction was first published in 1849, are located in front of a landscape that already hints at a desert. It has been said that the real difference between the north and the south is the palm tree: it gives dates in the north and hard nuts in the south. The engravings on the slabs face the sparse gardens of the oasis.

250 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - The deep and mysterious engraving is from the Neolithic age. Perhaps it depicts a man? But nothing is certain. This engraving is the first clue of an affirmed spirituality: it encapsulates an idea in a symbol whose meaning seems to elude us. This document is an enlargement of the previous photo. Height: 0.97 m.

251 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - Engraving from the Bubaline age (Neolithic), often said to represent an archer. Nothing is less certain, although it is likely a human. Height: 0.37 m.

252 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - Engraving from the Bubaline age. Some see the rear part of an animal. This is a hypothesis, no more. Height: 0.51 m.

253 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - Beneath a finely engraved small bovine and two ostriches below its head, a curious being with its legs folded and open in a praying position. The vertical lines crossing the body remain unexplained. One must accept that the intention of the (or the) engraver cannot be revealed. Head diameter: 0.12 m.

254 - Moghar et-Taghtani (Algeria). - This beautiful set of Bubaline engravings is typical of the problem posed by interpreting works from this era. In the center, a figure with disheveled hair. The arms, whose hands are always highlighted, are in the so-called "praying" position. A line at chest height is unexplained. The figure wears a loincloth, part of which forms a tail (could it be an animal skin?). It dominates a scene in which a ritual appears to be performed. On the left, a curious hoofed animal with a "round" head carries strange horns. Its legs transition into a humanoid figure similar to those in photos 251 and 253 but may have a bow at the right arm. In the center and bottom, then to the right, two hoofed animals remove, through their engravings, any suggestion of clumsiness from the engraver. Note the links that seem attached to the hind legs of the two hoofed animals. Inside one of them, at the center, a small animal is engraved. The praying figure is 0.67 m in height.