Photo Gallery

Chapter 4: MAGHREB - Algeria, Morocco, Mauritania

The term ‘Maghreb’ is commonly used to describe the region in North Africa that stretches from Libya to Mauritania and also includes the present-day states of Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco. The Arabic word ‘Maghreb’ stands for the geographical west and literally refers to the ‘place of sunset’. The Neolithic way of life is evidenced not only by the rock paintings, but also by the numerous types of tools that can still be found today. The grating bowls and grating stones are particularly impressive. But there are also plenty of sickles, arrow shaft smoothers, occasionally even elaborately made tools with stone cuts and drilled holes, clay shards, etc., showing that today's desert area once offered a thoroughly liveable environment, some of which was stable for thousands of years.

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.

255 - Thyout (Algeria). - A scene that shocked many at the end of the 19th century. It is now referred to as "The Hunting Lesson". In fact, at the top of this Neolithic engraving, there is a "placental bond" linking a mythical being with a hunter aiming at an ostrich followed by a dog. Between the "god" and the "creature" is a small, undefined ungulate. This is a scene of fertility invocation. The three engraved scenes below are of the same nature. On the far right of the photo, the hindquarters of a large bovine. The large figure at the bottom left measures 0.64 m in height.

256 - Thyout (Algeria). - The same scene as the previous one, but reduced to the two figures connected by the "placental bond".

257 - Thyout (Algeria). - This propitiatory scene depicts an "archer" holding an undefined object in his left hand. A placental bond connects him with a small figure.

258 - Taghit (Algeria). - Detail from photo 262. Engraved foot and hand.

259 - Taghit (Algeria). - Detail from photo 262. Engraving of a bovine and inexplicables signs.

260 - Taghit (Algeria). - Curious engraving of a bovine whose tail reaches a natural fissure, intentionally extending it. From the tip of the horn to the edge of the rock on the left: 2.40 m.

261 - Taghit (Algeria). - Engraving of a bovine executed with regular strokes. The head is lightly dotted. Another figure exists at the bottom right. The rest represents recent and crude overpainting. Width of the panel depicted: 1.30 m.

262 - Taghit (Algeria). - Large fresco showing many bovines and caprines oriented in both directions. There are only two representations of humans in the form of small schematic engravings slightly to the right of the center, at the bottom of the fresco. Above, further to the right, there is an engraved hand and foot. The slab measures between 1.70 m and 2 m in height and 4.50 m in length.

263 - Taghit (Algeria). - Detail from photo 262. Engravings in a uniform stroke style. Two schematic humans are clearly visible here.

264 - Taghit (Algeria). - Detail of photo 262. It seems the engraver wanted to depict all the species of ungulates he knew. The large central bovine measures 0.93 m from the top of the horns to the bottom of the front legs.

265 - Figuig (Morocco). - ‘Sacred’ sheep. The collar is only depicted on one side and was obviously not engraved at the same time as the animal. Only the lines above the head give the sheep a mysterious appearance. From the rump to the forehead: 0.80 metres.

266 - Tazka-Tafraout (Morocco). - Very schematically engraved ungulate (ram?). The genitals are, however, depicted. From the tip of the horn to the right front hoof: 1.54 m.

267 - Tazka-Tafraout (Morocco). - Engraving related to the previous one, but more elaborate. From the base of the tail to the tip of the horn: 1.96 m.

268 - Tigane (Morocco). - Gazelles, whose lightness is well conveyed by the engraving. Many lines without graphic organization may be traces of polishing. Width of the depicted panel: 0.45 m.

269 - Icht (Morocco). - Curious engraving with difficult identification. An ungulate is topped by another engraving that starts from the tail and ends at the snout. From the tail to the snout: 0.30 m.

270 - Azib n'Ikkis (Morocco). - Metal Age. Extraordinary bird (by the legs) with a square body. One leg has five toes, the other six. The wings (?) hang down with feathers (?). To the right, two daggers. Height of the subject: 0.95 m.

271 - Tigane (Morocco). - Deeply engraved animal. A hump dominates the neck, but it is unclear what it represents. Note the crosslines in the hindquarters. From the snout to the tail: 0.38 m.

272 - Tigane (Morocco). - Engraved rhinoceros. Interesting because of the climatic indication it gives. It is very schematic and shows only one horn. In the same style, between the legs, another indeterminate animal. Note the scattered lines across the entire depicted surface. Length: 0.14 m.

273 - Tigane (Morocco). - Epoch of the "bubale." Another engraved rhinoceros. This time it has two horns and well-marked ears. Length from the front horn to the hindquarters: 0.38 m.

274 - Smara. A very beautiful gazelle with thread-like legs, as many exist in the region. It is followed by another, less clearly carved, and topped by a smaller subject. Width of the depicted panel: 1.15 m.

275 - Region of Tiflit. - Elephants, schematically carved, with deep lines. The pair of legs is rendered by a median line in the legs. Height from the skull to the front foot: 0.35 m.

276 - Region of Merem. - A hooved animal on the left, and two giraffes on the right. The mane is exaggeratedly long. Notice that the use of the rock surface is maximized with the giraffe on the right. From the giraffe’s ears to the tips of its legs: 0.77 m.

277 - Region of Smara. - Bubale (the famous Pelorouis antiquus Duv.), whose horns, in aerial view, contrast with the body shown in profile. Deep-line engraving. One interpretation suggests the animal is lying down and struck by lines. Length from tail to snout: 0.27 m.

280 - Col d'Amoggiar (Mauritania). - Ostrich painted in yellowish-white. From head to feet: 0.09 m in height.

281 - Col d'Amoggiar (Mauritania). - Fresco of figures painted in red ochre in a small, isolated rock shelter. At the top left, standing figures can be seen, each with the right hand on the hip and the left hand extended towards the neighbor. The second holds a bow in the right hand. The third holds the second's hand and wears a balloon-like skirt. Below, on the right, a rider, a seated person, and a small bovine. The work is heavily degraded by wind erosion.

282 - Oumat-el-Ham (Mauritania). - Two antelopes painted in red ochre, facing each other with their rear ends. The animal on the right shows only one front and one hind leg. Length from snout to snout: 0.38 m.

283 - Oumat-el-Harn (Mauritania). - A rhinoceros painted in red ochre (discovered by Maximilien Bruggmann in 1969). Length: 0.18 m.

284 - Noudache (Mauritania). - A chariot in a very decadent style, difficult to date. The interest of this chariot, painted in red ochre and drawn by oxen, lies in the driver’s donkey head. From the oxen's head to the driver's head: 0.25 m.

285 - Noudache (Mauritania). - A chariot drawn by two oxen, executed in red ochre. Two-wheeled axle. The driver here is a man. The giraffe is unintentionally comic due to the length of its neck and the excessively long tail. From the giraffe’s snout to the driver’s head: 0.48 m.