Tassili n'Ajjer

Tassili n'Ajjer, a vast sandstone plateau in the deep Sahara of southeastern Algeria, is one of the most spectacular and mysterious landscapes on earth, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Wind and time have carved its rock into a surreal maze of eroded pinnacles, natural arches and stone forests, dotted with cypress trees and hidden pools. Above all, it holds one of the greatest concentrations of prehistoric rock art in the world, thousands of paintings and engravings spanning many millennia that depict a once-green Sahara of herders, hunters, cattle and wild animals. To trek among these ancient galleries and stone spires is to journey through both deep time and dreamlike beauty.

History

The highlands of Tassili n'Ajjer show human occupation from 5500 to 1500 BCE and the lowlands have stone tumuli and hearths of 6000 to 4000 BCE, left mainly by Neolithic pastoralists who camped here in the dry season. Europeans have studied Algerian rock art since 1863, but Westerners came to know Tassili above all through sketches made by French legionnaires, particularly Lieutenant Charles Brenans in the 1930s, who brought with him the archaeologist Henri Lhote; Lhote returned in 1956-1957, 1959, 1962 and 1970, and his team was later accused of faking images and of damaging paintings by brightening them for tracing and photography. The plateau, covering more than 72,000 square kilometres, is a national park and a biosphere reserve and was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1982 (Wikipedia, Tassili n'Ajjer).

The landscape

• The rock art - the thousands of ancient paintings and engravings.
• The stone forests - the surreal eroded pinnacles and arches.
• The natural arches - the towering wind-carved rock formations.
• The desert plateau - the vast Saharan wilderness and hidden pools.

When to go

October to April, the cooler months, are the only comfortable and safe time for the deep Sahara, avoiding the extreme summer heat; the winter desert is mild by day and cold at night, ideal for trekking expeditions to the rock-art sites. The low sun casts dramatic light on the stone forests.

Before you go

Tassili n'Ajjer lies deep in the Sahara and is reached only via the oasis town of Djanet on multi-day guided trekking expeditions with camping, so it demands time, fitness and a spirit of adventure. As a surreal UNESCO World Heritage wonderland of stone forests holding one of the world's greatest treasuries of prehistoric rock art, though, it is an utterly extraordinary and rewarding journey.

Nearby

The oasis town of Djanet and the wider Algerian Sahara lie around the plateau.

Key facts