Prehistoric rock paintings represent the earliest form of human creativity and this is no less true than in the case of the art found at Chongoni Rock Forest Reserve, Malawi’s most underrated national treasure. Despite being a UNESCO World Heritage Site these ancient records have received surprisingly few visitors. There are over 100 painted rock faces in the Chongoni Rock Area in Central Malawi that record the daily lives of the Malawian tribes of the Stone Age. There are about 127 recorded sites in total making these the largest ancient paintings in central Africa. However more and more sites are being discovered in the area. The paintings are spread throughout many hills and mountains in the Chongoni Area, with the highest concentration of rock art appearing in the Chongoni mountain, the largest mountain in the region. Chongoni Rock-Art Area, Malawi | © Lazare Eloundou Assomo Despite the low number of visitors, several rock panels can still be reached with reasonable ease. The most notable are those at Chencherere, Namzeze and Mphunzi. At the core of the 126 square kilometre UNESCO-inscribed rock-art area, the Chongoni Forest Reserve lies about 80 kilometres from the capital city Lilongwe and is also the site of the Chongoni Forestry College and associated Kazela Forestry Resthouse. In the Chongoni Rock Art area, visitors see ancient paintings done by two groups of people: first the Akafula who occupied the northern part of Dedza before the Chewa and other tribes moved into the country now called Malawi. These Akafula were…
Get exclusive access to this story
Subscribe to Nomad Africa and get unlimited access to our exclusive articles on African cultural heritage, travel tips, tourism news updates, industry trends and insights. Your subscription will also help support tourism in Africa. Subscription starts from only R15 ($1 USD) per month.*
Already a subscriber? Login here
*Charged for the first month after which standard rates apply. Cancel anytime.
...
