(Ancient people) painted colorful mountains

The Huashan Rock Paintings, called “Balae” in Zhuang language, meaning colorful mountains, are located about 25 kilometers southwest of Ningming County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, on the banks of the Mingjiang River. These rock paintings are relics left by the Luoyue people, ancestors of the Zhuang ethnic group in the Zuojiang River Basin of Lingnan, during their witchcraft activities from the Warring States period to the Eastern Han Dynasty, with a history of 1800 to 2500 years. The Huashan Rock Paintings are a typical representative of the rock paintings in the Zuojiang River Basin in Guangxi, known for their grand scale, spectacular scenes, and numerous images. On July 15, 2016, the Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape was listed as a World Cultural Heritage, filling the gap of rock art world heritage in China. The rock paintings depict more than 1900 human figures, as well as numerous animals, bronze drums (or gongs), ring-headed knives, and other patterns. The human figures generally squat with their feet apart in a V-shape, raising their hands upward. The images are simple and primitive, with bold and powerful lines. These rock paintings are not only treasures of ancient Zhuang art but also the crystallization of the thousand-year culture of the working people of the Chinese nation.