Djibouti's hidden rock art - stretching 3km - offers window to the past

Ibrahim Dabale, a native and art guardian, shows art etched into volcanic rock at the remote Abourma Rock Art site in the Makarassou Massif of Tadjoura Region, northern Djibouti. Photo: AFP

From a distance, the black cliffs appear featureless, scorched by a blazing desert sun. But up close, the basalt reveals engravings of giraffe, ostrich and antelope made 7,000 years ago.

These masterful works, etched onto stone in northern Djibouti, are among the most important examples of rock art in the Horn of Africa, a region rich in archaeological heritage and the birthplace of humanity.