A preliminary survey shows that a total of 1,228 rock painting sites have been found and recorded across China, a Chinese rock painting expert said Wednesday.
Wang Jianping, chairman of Chinese Rock Art Association, said at a rock painting exhibition Wednesday that 1,228 relic sites, including tens of millions of rock paintings, had been recorded.
Those sites are scattered in more than 100 counties in 28 provinces and regions in China. Nineteen areas have been recorded as national protection sites, 88 sites are classified as provincial protection units and another 199 sites are county-level protection sites.
The rock painting exhibition opened on Wednesday in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. The exhibition, which will last for one month, exhibits ancient rock paintings, rubbings, replicas, photos and artworks.
The exhibition aims at strengthening the preservation of rock paintings in Ningxia and giving knowledge about rock paintings, according to Wang.
Since the protection of rock painting is a universal problem, the exhibition has set up a dedicated section to display the damage of rock paintings to teach people about their endangered condition around the world.
"We are accountable for the rescue, protection, research and inheritance of rock paintings," Wang said.
The earliest rock paintings discovered in China are located in the Yinshan Mountains in Inner Mongolia and date back more than 10,000 years.
