Chongoni Rock Art Area

The granite hills around Chongoni near Dedza carry the densest concentration of rock art in Central Africa: around a hundred and twenty-seven recorded sites, with older schematic paintings attributed to BaTwa hunter-gatherers and later white work made by Chewa farming communities, much of it connected to the Nyau secret society and to women's initiation rites that are still practised. That living connection is unusual and was central to the 2006 inscription.

Background

The 127 sites are spread across 126.4 square kilometres of granite hills near Dedza, the highest town in Malawi at 1600 metres, which lies some 80 kilometres south-east of Lilongwe. Only five of them lie outside the Chongoni Forest Reserve, declared in 1924. Rock art here was first reported in the 1930s, and five sites became protected national monuments in 1969. Finds dated to 2,500 BP show that hunter gatherers lived here in the Late Stone Age, while farmers of the 1st millennium AD painted figures in white clay. Three sites are open to visitors: Chentcherere, with six rock shelters, Namzeze, with red geometric patterns and white paintings, and Mphunzi.

Source: Wikipedia, "Chongoni Rock Art Area"

What you'll find

• The painted shelters - around a hundred and twenty-seven recorded sites across the hills.
• The two traditions - older schematic work and later Chewa white paintings.
• The Nyau connection - the association with the secret society still active in the area.
• The living use - sites still connected to rites practised today.

When to go

May to October is the dry season and best for the walks. Grass hides the approaches after the rains. Guides are compulsory and arranged locally.

Good to know

Guides are compulsory and the sites are spread across hills requiring real walking. Some sites are closed because they remain in ritual use. Interpretation on the ground is limited.

Nearby

Dedza is nearby, and Lilongwe is north.

Key facts