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Africa Praehistorica 7, Köln 1993
Harald Pager:
THE ROCKPAINTINGS OF THE UPPER BRANDBERG;
PART III - SOUTHERN GORGES
Concept and text by Tilman Lenssen-Erz,
edited by Rudolph Kuper
- 543 pp.
- 360 pp. of rock art reproductions
- 5 bw. photographs, 8 colour photographs
- maps, many line illustrations, tables
- 4 folded plates in pocket inside back-cover,
thereof 3 plates 70 x 100 cm
1 plate 45 x 65 cm
- hardcover, half linen-bound, size 24 x 34 cm
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Towering almost 2,000 m above the Namib desert in southern Africa is the
Brandberg mountain. This granite massif is adorned with prehistoric rock
art, which is a highlight of African art and attests to humankind's early
intellectual abilities. The late Harald Pager was primarily responsible
for the comprehensive documentation of the Brandberg's rock art. A team
of scientists, technicians and designers at the Heinrich-Barth-Institut e.V.
refined Pager's documentation for publication in a series of catalogues.
This volume (see also Africa Praehistorica 10 and 12) renders the Brandberg
the best documented rock art areas on earth.
The book at hand examines rock art from 97 different sites on the southern
flank of the mountain, including both unknown and known gorges such as
the Orabes and Ga'aseb. The elevation and plan of each site is given and
all of the rock art figures are reproduced in pen and ink tracings on
a fixed scale. To generate the graphics no computer was used, instead,
all of the graphics included in this book are drawn by hand. The diversity
of the art and its surroundings can be seen in several colour plates.
In a pocket at the back of the book are folded plates of four large friezes.
Each rock art figure and scene is carefully explained in a set of tables
based on a textual/analytical system developed by Tilman Lenssen-Erz.
The introduction to the rock art sites covered in this volume complements
the scientific catalogue.
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