LAHORE, Sept 14: The federal archaeology department claims to have discovered rock-art sites near the Siachen Glacier, between the villages of Domsum and Gulshan-i-Kabin on the left bank of Saltoro river in the Lower Sheyole (Khaplu) valley.

Khaplu is located in eastern Baltistan, some 103km away from Skardu. The engravings depicting animal and human figures and inscriptions on boulders and rocks in the sub-valleys of Khaplu are some of the oldest historic remains of the region.

Deputy Director Dr Muhammad Arif who led a three-member team to Khaplu in May told this reporter on Sunday that this valley had been properly explored for the first time. "As many as 40 rock-art sites have been discovered," he said, adding that rock art should also be protected under the Antiquity Act-1975.

Mr Arif says that Brenhmi letters and drawings of ibexes are engraved in a large number of rocks. On one boulder is engraved a warrior on horseback holding a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right besides several other figures of men in the standing posture. He says that Bonism and Buddhism were major religions of this area at the time.

He is of the view that the region of Khaplu has not been studied much. Despite its antiquity, culture and traditions, it seems to have attracted tourists but not archaeologists and scientists, he adds.

Traces of the cultural impact of Tibetan Buddhism and art from the 10th to 12th century are found throughout the Khaplu valley. Traders from Skardu and Shinger used to do business with Ladakh valley through Khaplu, Chhorbat, Nobra and Leh. From Khaplu, a route through Saltoro Pass led to the Nobra valley (Ladakh) which connected it to Central Asia through the Karakorum pass.

The Northern Areas are famous for rock-art sites. There is no written record of the early history of Northern Areas, but there are archaeological remains that offer guidance to history of the region.

A.H. Franke in his History of Western Tibet (1907) calls people of the area 'people of rock art'. Rock carvings and inscriptions are found in every continent of the world but they have been documented only during the last 20 years by some international organizations in collaboration with Unesco.

The Northern Areas of Pakistan are said to be richer in rock carvings of pre-historic, Buddhist and post-Buddhist periods than any other part of the world. The most thorough work carried out in this regard is that of a Pak-German study group. It has reportedly discovered thousands of rock carvings and inscriptions in the Northern Areas.

Only a few rock carvings and inscriptions have been properly studied, such as those at Hatun by Chakravarti from 1953 to 54 and some artistic and fascinating drawings and inscriptions near Chilas by Stein in 1944.