Elephants in South-East Asian Rock Art, an Overview

Abstract

This paper presents a survey of elephant depictions in Southeast Asian rock art, which, as a class of archaeological material remains relatively unstudied in the region. Elephants have been depicted in rock art in many parts of Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos. These depictions are varied, in size, form and possibly age. Both wild and domesticated elephants are portrayed. Rock art has a deep antiquity in Southeast Asia with the oldest known paintings approximately 40,000 years old. The date of the elephant depictions in rock art is less certain. Collectively Southeast Asian elephant rock art pose larger questions about the significance of elephants in Southeast Asia and the date of domestication of elephants in the region.