LEGACY ON THE ROCKS: THE PREHISTORIC HUNTER-GATHERERS OF THE MATOPO HILLS, ZIMBABWE by Parry, Elspeth

ISBN: 9781842170106

Oxbow Books | 01 December 2000

Hardcover | 132 pages

The Matopo Hills, an area of rugged and majestic hills in Zimbabwe, contain a staggering number of prehistoric rock paintings. Eighteen years of fieldwork in this area has produced a stunning collection of rock art images, many previously unpublished and probably unique to the Matopo region. These rock paintings are a unique record of hunter-gatherer society and provide insights into the relationship between hunter-gatherers and immigrant pastoralists, evidence that is generally lacking in the archaeology of the area. Well over one thousand painted panels have been closely observed and the illustrations presented here have been drawn from 124 separate sites. The exact copies have been produced using techniques that scrupulously avoid direct contact with the images and are the work of Janet Duff, a scientific illustrator. This method emphasises the importance of conservation and preservation which is also discussed extensively in the book. An evocative look at the work of a lost people, this study is intended to stimulate further research and interpretation of these incredible paintings.