Shebuqi Rock Carvings

Shebuqi Rock Carvings

Transportation: Located on the mountaintop of Shebuqi Gully in Shiputan, Nian’aisuoma Village, Quanji Township, Gangca County, 8 km east of Qinghai Lake, at an altitude of 3,600 meters. Accessible by taxi from Gangca County.

The rock carvings consist of a panel that is 2.8 meters high and 3.4 meters wide, with 23 individual figures remaining. The content includes animals, hunting scenes, etc. All images were made using the vertical percussion technique, featuring bold and unrestrained lines, with ancient and vivid depictions. Experts have dated them to the early Tang Dynasty. They were designated as a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit on May 27, 1986.

The Shebuqi Rock Carvings are divided into three groups:

Group One: 18 figures, facing east. The depicted images include yaks, deer, sheep, a person riding a horse, a horse-drawn cart, horseback hunting, and Tibetan script. All figures were created using the vertical percussion method. The image of a person riding a horse is rendered in a very generalized style, while the horseback hunter and Tibetan script were added later; the rest are early works. The horse-drawn cart is unfinished, and some figures have been damaged due to rock surface erosion.

Group Two: 6 figures, facing east. The depicted images include yaks, hunters, sheep, wolves, and eagles. At the top of the panel is a horseback hunting scene, where the hunted yak is large in stature, with a ring-shaped (actually an unfinished spherical) feature at the end of its tail. The yak has a small head, prominent shoulders, and a heavy, stocky body, giving it a powerful appearance. The hunter is on horseback, with a sling hanging from the waist, bow drawn and ready to shoot. Both figures are finely crafted and executed through full vertical percussion. The middle image shows a beast chase — a wolf pursuing a horse and a sheep. This beast chase image was made using the vertical percussion technique and is an early work, but it has been reworked in more recent times. At the bottom of the panel is an eagle-like figure, also created via full vertical percussion.

Group Three: 3 figures, facing east. All are yaks. All were made using the vertical percussion method, with fine craftsmanship and meticulous execution.

The hunting-on-horseback scene among the Shebuqi Rock Carvings is an image of significant chronological value. The rider is equipped with two types of weapons: one is a bow and arrow, and the other is a long weapon worn at the rider’s waist, with a spherical object attached to one end. Among the rock carvings in Qinghai region, this type of sling weapon is found not only at the Shebuqi site but also at sites such as the Wild Ox Gully and Lushan.