The red paintings
Stone Age lines and circles.
「Malawi」 — Public domain · Lazare Eloundou Assomo — CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Lazare Eloundou Assomo — CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Lazare Eloundou Assomo — CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Lazare Eloundou Assomo — CC BY-SA 3.0 igo · Lazare Eloundou Assomo — CC BY-SA 3.0 igo
The Chongoni Rock Art Area holds 127 painting sites in the forested hills of Malawi's central plateau. UNESCO listed it in 2006. It is reported to be the densest cluster of rock art in Central Africa, and it keeps a living link with local rituals today. The early red paintings are credited to BaTwa hunter-gatherers of the Stone Age, with finds dated to 2,500 years ago. Chewa farmers came in the first millennium AD and painted with white clay. The art is connected with rituals for rain, funerals and women's initiation. Five sites became protected national monuments in 1969 and opened to the public. On granite rock faces you see red lines, circles and dots and interlocking geometric shapes, with simple white animals over them. Sources name three sites open to the public: Chentcherere with six rock shelters, Namzeze with red geometric paintings, and Mphunzi with animal figures. The forest around is quiet, and the colours are faded with time. The area is 22.7 km in a straight line north-west of Dedza and 54 km south-east of Lilongwe. Do not touch the paintings, use flash or wet the rock to bring out colours. Take a local guide, as the sites are hard to find. The place is tied to living rituals, so ask before attending any ceremony, and wear suitable shoes.
Stone Age lines and circles.
Paintings by Chewa farmers.
Six rock shelters.
Chongoni Forest Reserve, near Dedza, central Malawi
A local guide is best, as sites are scattered and hard to find.
Yes, it is fairly close, so start in the morning.