Latest survey discovers over 500 new rock carvings in Ningxia's mountain area

A new round of survey on rock carvings in the Helan Mountain area of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region has discovered more than 500 new images since 2020, as the local management office works to complete records and verify the preservation status of existing rock art.

Among the newly discovered rock carvings, abstract symbols and animal patterns account for the largest share, while a number of high-quality carvings depicting scenes of daily life and production in ancient times have also been found.

"In this area where we are now, animal rock carvings are quite common, including bighorn sheep, argali, deer, and some tigers," said Zhang Xu, deputy head of the cultural relics management section of the Helan Mountain rock art administration.

As part of efforts to strengthen protection of these carvings, China's State Council designated the site as a major national cultural heritage unit under protection in 1996, followed by the establishment of the administration in 2002. In 2003, the city-level Helan Mountain rock art protection regulation became China's first dedicated legislation for the preservation of rock art.

The first round of rock carving survey on Helan Mountain was conducted from 2002 to 2003, when more than 5,600 groups of rock carvings were registered. Limited by field survey methods and equipment conditions at the time, many rock carvings hidden under rock piles or buried under shallow soil were not recorded.

Since 2020, the rock art administration has launched a second round of review, focusing on filling gaps in the records, checking the preservation and damage status of existing rock carvings one by one, improving archive materials for each site, and addressing the shortcomings left by the earlier survey.

In the second survey, workers have combined traditional methods with new technologies to systematically collect and preserve information on the location, pattern forms, sizes, and damage conditions of the rock carvings. According to staff members, the survey work is still ongoing.

Stretching 250 km, Helan Mountain is home to over 20,000 ancient rock carvings created by early inhabitants with stones, metal tools or mineral pigments. Dating back approximately 10,000 to 3,000 years, the carvings depict diverse subjects ranging from natural images like human faces, animals and handprints, to ancient life scenes such as herding, hunting and rituals.

Latest survey discovers over 500 new rock carvings in Ningxia's mountain area

At least five Palestinians, including three children, were killed late Sunday when a sand embankment collapsed at a displacement camp in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, raising fresh concerns over the perilous living conditions faced by displaced Palestinian families.

The deadly incident was triggered by recent heavy rainfall as the rainy winter season sets in. Several others were injured as large amounts of earth cascaded down, burying their tents. Local authorities warned that the danger remains high in and around these makeshift shelters.

Survivors recounted harrowing scenes of desperation as they scrambled to save their loved ones in the collapse.

"The masses of earth collapsed on us, burying my mother, my children and my sister beneath the tent. I managed to rescue my mother and children from under the sand. I also saved my brother, whose face was completely covered in sand. Thank God, he survived," said Abdel Karim Al-Sahhar, a displaced Palestinian.

However, not everyone was as fortunate. Mustafa Al-Masri, another displaced resident, described the agonizing lack of resources during the rescue efforts.

"When we arrived, we found this huge mass of mud had collapsed onto people. We had no lights or equipment to rescue them, including the children and a pregnant woman. We couldn't help them because we had no rescue equipment. We dug with our bare hands and pulled the children out dead," said Al-Masri.

The tragedy underscores the dire reality for the vast majority of Gaza's two million residents, who continue to live in fragile tent encampments or the ruins of bombed-out buildings.

With large-scale reconstruction yet to begin following Israel's three-year military assault, many families are now bracing for their fourth winter of coping with floodwaters that frequently overtake tents and soak their meager belongings.

Mohammed Abboud, acting head of the Ministry of Public Works and Housing in Gaza, warned that such disasters are likely to recur as long as aid supplies remain severely restricted from entering the besieged strip.

"This is a tragedy that could happen again every day because basic living conditions are lacking. We are talking about camps set up in dangerous areas, facing a harsh winter. The solution is to provide safe places and permanent mobile homes for people here, because tents offer no protection from the winter cold or the summer heat," said Abboud.

Rain-triggered sand embankment collapse kills 5 in central Gaza