Ukhtasar

Ughtasar—literally “Camel Mountain”—is a sacred ground for those drawn to the earliest chapters of human history. Its slopes, curved like a camel’s back, bear silent witness to prehistoric life. Thousands of petroglyphs etched into the dark volcanic stone capture the daily world and inner visions of early humans who lived here as far back as the Paleolithic era—more than 12,000 years BCE.

The evidence is carved into the stone. Scattered across the entire mountain perimeter are thousands of images—scenes of hunting, agriculture, ritual dances, animals, battles, and symbols of tribal life. Locals call them “goat letters,” and each line tells a fragment of a long-forgotten story. Scientists believe the figures were incised with sharp stone tools into the black and gray surfaces of volcanic origin. The craftsmanship is remarkable. Animal bodies are rendered with striking accuracy—their proportions precise, their movements fluid. The technique is delicate: grooves run 2–6 mm deep and 2–21 mm wide, cut clean into smooth rock. Based on stylistic and technical analysis, most of the petroglyphs date between the 5th and 2nd millennia BCE.

The exact number of carvings remains unknown, but estimates suggest more than 10,000. What’s astonishing is how many have survived—time has only worn away a fraction. These markings are not just decoration; they hold vital insight into the customs, beliefs, and lives of early inhabitants.

Towering at 3,582 meters above sea level, Ughtasar is more than an archaeological site—it’s a monument of endurance. Near the summit lies a glacial lake formed in the crater of an extinct volcano, last active in the Pleistocene epoch. Locals believe the water possesses healing powers. Some visitors come not to study, but to be restored.

Ughtasar is not just a mountain—it is a living archive etched in stone. Every line cut into its surface is a whisper from a world long past, preserved in the silence of altitude and time.