Located in Haizhou District, Lianyungang City, Jiangsu Province, the Jiangjunya Petroglyph is the oldest petroglyphs of the era discovered in China and the only petroglyph that reflects the original worship content of agricultural tribes. It is formed about 7,000 years ago. The famous archeologist Mr. Su Bingqi called it China’s first “sealed book”.
On an overturned bowl-like hillside with a north-south length of 22.1 meters and an east-west width of 15 meters, there are three groups of petroglyphs whose lines are wide and shallow, rough and straight, primitive in style, V-shaped section, smooth walls, and made by stone tools knocking, drilling and grinding.
The first group of petroglyphs is on the west side of the hillside. It is mainly composed of figures and crop patterns. Between the human face and the crop, there are bird heads, bird faces, dots, and scribed symbols. The second group is on the south side of the hillside, with astrological, bird and animal patterns. The third group is on the top of the hill and consists of human faces and various symbols. In addition, there are many artificially chiseled pits on the rocks at the top of the hill.
Many archeologists and historians have done research on these petroglyphs and tried to solve the mysteries contained in the rock paintings. The contents of the rock paintings reflect the ancestors’ sense of worship of the land, creator gods, and celestial bodies. For a series of interpretations, this study of the history of the development of human civilization is also of certain importance.
