Khavtsgait petroglyphs

 “Khavtsgait petroglyphs” is located 30km away from Bulgan soum, Umnugovi aimag. The Khavtsgait petroglyph is beautifully carved on many rocks on the top of Khavtsgait mountain which is the western part of the Gurvan Saikhan Mountain range.  Its petroglyphs date back to the mid and late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age (4000-5000 BC).
Geologists say that the Gurvan Saikhan mountain range and Khavtsgait mountain are quite young, created around 400-500 million years ago. Khavtsgait mountain rocks are sandstones. As a result of the hot sun and strong wind for millions of years, the rock surfaces of Khavtsgait Mountain are colored in black and easy to draw on them with any item, leaving light marks. 

Since 2004, Researchers of petroglyphs noticed and studied this place. However local people have known this place long before them.  The surrounding mountains of Khavtsgait have many rock paintings and petroglyphs too. 

Rock paintings on the Khavtsgait mountain

The engravings vary in size, ranging from two centimeters to the real-life size of horses. The biggest sloping flat rock called the “Art Gallery” faces towards to the southwest.  The form, representation, skill, and design of the paintings depicted on that rock may have been created by several people over decades.

At Khavtsgait rock, there are various animals that do not exist that are like deer, ostriches, large bull deer,  rather than the leopard, tiger, “Tiger family” are depicted several times.