Gamigaya Petroglyphs
Azerbaijan · Asia
Around 1,500 Bronze- and Iron-Age carvings high on a volcanic massif in Nakhchivan — deer, goats and hunters, on a mountain the local flood legend calls a stone ship.
Age
~3,000–6,000 yrs
Period
Bronze Age to Early Iron Age
Setting
Open-air
Art form
Petroglyphs
Discovered
1968
Status
Open (Remote Mountain)
High on the Gamigaya (“stone ship”) massif below Qapıcıq peak, near Nəsirvaz in Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave, some 1,500 images were pecked into basalt between the 4th and 1st millennia BC. Deer, goats, bulls, dogs, birds and snakes mingle with hunters, ox-carts, dancers and sun-and-moon symbols. Studied since 1968 and still yielding new panels, the site owes its name to a flood legend that grounds a great ship on the mountain.
Gallery
Notable Features
- ◦ ~1,500 carvings on a high volcanic massif
- ◦ Deer, goats, hunters, ox-carts and sky symbols
- ◦ Named for a local “stone ship” flood legend
Depicted Subjects
DeerGoatsBullsHunting ScenesSun Symbols
Plan a Visit
AccessThis cave can be visited.
Sources & Further Reading
Hours & prices change — always confirm on the official site before travelling.
Photographs via Wikimedia Commons — image credits. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.