Petroglyph

A design made on a rock surface by removing or marking its material, commonly through pecking, carving, or scratching. Petroglyphs are distinct from images painted onto rock.

Pecking (rock art): A rock-art technique that creates marks by repeatedly striking a surface with a harder tool. Repeated impacts form the pits and grooves that make many petroglyphs visible.
Rock art dating: The methods used to estimate when prehistoric or historic images were made on rock surfaces. Petroglyphs are often dated indirectly through their surfaces, tools, or archaeological context.
Côa Valley: A Portuguese archaeological region known for extensive Paleolithic engravings on exposed schist surfaces. Its open-air engravings became central to debates about preserving petroglyph landscapes.
Indigenous rock art: Rock images and markings created within Indigenous cultural traditions across the world. Many petroglyphs belong to living or historically continuous Indigenous traditions.
Rock engraving: A process of cutting lines or designs into a hard surface. Engraving produces petroglyphs by removing rock along deliberate lines.
Archaeological stratigraphy: The study of layered deposits and their sequence to establish relative chronology. Objects or sediments covering or associated with a petroglyph can constrain its date.
Tassili n'Ajjer: A Saharan plateau in Algeria containing extensive prehistoric rock art and archaeological remains. Its rock-art landscape includes engraved figures alongside painted images.
Archaeological interpretation: The process of explaining material evidence using context, comparison, and explicit reasoning. Petroglyph meanings are rarely self-evident and require interpretation grounded in context.
Rock abrasion: The wearing away of rock through friction with other material. Abrasion can smooth or deepen marks during petroglyph production.
Radiocarbon dating: A method for estimating the age of once-living material by measuring radioactive carbon decay. Organic material associated with a petroglyph may provide a date, though the rock mark itself cannot be radiocarbon dated.

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