Ethnography: An emerging trend in rock art research

Abstract

Conventionally, in rock art studies, the emphasis is focused on style, motifs and techniques. But in recent years, there is a growing body of work that recognizes the importance of interpreting rock art not only within the context of the rockscape, but within a holistic context that includes a more accurate view of prehistoric culture, information from contemporary indigenous people, their ethnography, culture and material and non-material culture, etc. In view of this, the chapter emphasizes on ethnographic source in rock art research, for there are many ethnographic sources that can be used meaningfully to examine the rock art, especially to interpret the subjective matters in them.