Rock Paintings of Shulgan-Tash Cave

Overview

Located in the Southern Ural Mountains of Bashkortostan, the Shulgan-Tash Cave contains extensive Late Palaeolithic rock art. Set within a karst massif near the Belaya and Shulgan Rivers, it features large halls and deep chambers across two levels. The paintings depict steppe fauna—mammoths, woolly rhinoceroses, bison, horses, and a Bactrian camel—alongside anthropomorphic figures, abstract signs, and geometric motifs like the “Kapova trapezoids.” Archaeological finds offer insights into the artistic process and domestic life of its prehistoric inhabitants.