africa

This impressive book by photographer David Coulson and co-author Alec Campbell is a comprehensive study of the rock paintings and engravings of the African continent.

Chapter I deals with the history and peoples of Africa, with special chapters on the Bushmen and Bantu-speaking people. Chapter II is a discussion of rock art and speculations on who the artists were, including the latest research.

Chapter III explores the styles, subject matter and the specific rock art sites, whilst Cheaper IV is devoted to dating. Chapter V deals with Southern Africa under heading for Zimbabwe, Namibia, the southwestern Cape, the Maluti and Drakensberg mountains, the inland plateau and the Tsodilo hills.

The following two chapters are devoted to Eastern and Northern Africa respectively, whilst Chapter VIII discusses the geometric designs and the style called Late White paintings. Chapter IX considers aspects of preservation and the future of Africa's rock art.

The book contains 400 full colour photographs and line drawings plus 7 maps. These photographs also include living people and animals. The maps depict Africa, the language groups, African peoples, the distribution of rock art on the continent, and the specific distribution in Southern, Eastern and Northern Africa respectively.

This classic work concludes with a glossary, bibliography and index. I would also like to recommend the books The Cave Of Altamira, edited by Antonio Beltran, and The Mind In The Cave by Lewis-Williams.

Alec Campbell's African Rock Art: Paintings And Engravings On Stone, superbly and profusely illustrated with more than two hundred examples of David Coulson's color photography, spectacularly and informatively showcases Africa's rock art with examples drawn from the entire continent. The text provides the reader with an authoritative and "reader friendly" historical and interpretative analysis. Alec Campbell draws upon his many years of experience as the founder and former director of the "National Museum of Botswana", and is a resident of the area. David Coulson is founder and chairman of the "Trust for African Rock Art" and combines his special expertise with skills as a photography to provide a visual record of outstanding works, many of which are now endangered by erosion, theft, and vandalism. African Rock Art is an impressive and much appreciated addition to personal, academic and community library African art history and cultural studies collections.