Tassili n'Ajjer
Algeria · Africa · ✦ UNESCO World Heritage Site
15,000 Saharan masterpieces record a lost green world of rivers, elephants and vanished civilisations
Age
~10,000 yrs
Period
Neolithic
Setting
Rock shelter
Art form
Paintings
Discovered
1933
Status
Open (Guided Tours)
A vast plateau in the central Sahara containing one of the world's most important collections of prehistoric art — over 15,000 petroglyphs and cave paintings. The art reveals the Green Sahara: a period when the desert was crossed by rivers, grazed by elephants and hippos and inhabited by elaborate civilisations long since vanished beneath the sand.
Gallery
Notable Features
- ◦ 15,000+ rock images
- ◦ Round Head paintings
- ◦ Green Sahara civilisation record
Depicted Subjects
CattleElephantsGiraffesHippopotamusesHuman FiguresRound Head Figures
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.