Twyfelfontein, Rock art petroglyphs in Kunene Region, Namibia

Twyfelfontein is a valley of reddish-brown sandstone slabs covered in a dark desert varnish, into which more than 2,500 figures were chiselled to expose the lighter rock beneath. The engravings show rhinoceroses, elephants, giraffes, ostriches and human figures, including a lion with a long kinked tail ending in a six-toed pugmark. Fourteen smaller sites, first mapped by Ernst Rudolph Scherz, group the artworks.

Hunter-gatherers of the Wilton culture made most of the engravings, and Khoikhoi herders who arrived about 2,000 to 2,500 years ago added distinct rock art. Topographer Reinhard Maack reported the engravings in 1921. Ernst Rudolph Scherz described over 2,500 engravings on 212 sandstone slabs in 1950, and UNESCO listed the site in 2007.

The carvings reveal how ancient hunter-gatherers saw their world, with animals like elephants and antelopes appearing again and again in their art. These repeated images show that the creatures around them held deep meaning in their daily lives and beliefs.

The engraved panels lie in a valley reached via the D3214 district road, 20 km south of the C39 between Sesfontein and Khorixas. A visitor centre and lodge operate as a joint venture with the Twyfelfontein-Uibasen Conservancy, and a gravel airstrip serves the lodge. Rainfall stays under 150 mm a year; July days run 10–28 °C, November 21–35 °C.

A seal engraving lies nearly 100 km from the Atlantic, the only marine animal among the carvings. German sources also record a rhinoceros, now almost exterminated in the area, and the Dancing Kudu, one of the best-known panels. Many animal figures are shown together with their tracks.