Archaeologists have documented more than 1,200 petroglyphs in the Burkhansai gorge of Kazakhstan’s Zhambyl region, The Astana Times reports, along with a rare inscription in Old Turkic runic script.
The rock carvings are spread across five clusters and show animals, hunting scenes and pastoral life. The oldest date back around 4,000 years to the Bronze Age, and people kept adding images to the rocks right up to modern times. The inscription, a short personal statement, reads: “My name is Aba.”
The work was carried out by the Margulan Institute of Archaeology with local heritage specialists, following systematic fieldwork that began in 2024. Researchers say the find will add to the study of the ancient Turkic writing tradition and the nomadic routes that crossed the steppe for millennia.
Source: The Astana Times