Tassili n’Ajjer is the Algerian rock-art site famous for paintings of cattle and wild animals from the Green Sahara.
This vast sandstone plateau in southeastern Algeria contains thousands of engravings and paintings. Many depict people, cattle, giraffes, antelopes and other animals that indicate environmental conditions much wetter than those of the modern desert. The artwork spans several periods, beginning thousands of years ago.
During the African Humid Period, parts of today’s Sahara supported grasslands, lakes and more abundant wildlife. As the climate became drier, human communities and animals gradually shifted toward better-watered regions. The paintings preserve evidence of that long environmental transition.
Tassili n’Ajjer is a UNESCO World Heritage site and also has exceptional geological scenery, including eroded sandstone formations. Its art is sometimes casually called “prehistoric Egyptian art,” but the plateau lies in Algeria and represents local Saharan cultural traditions.