Rock Art of Chertovo Pleso on the Kiya River

Over the last five years of research at the Chertovo Pleso rock art site, located on the bank of the Kiya River (a tributary of Ussuri), the processing of digital elevation models (DEMs) has led to the discovery of new images. These include superficial ones that are not visible to the naked eye, even under varying lighting conditions. It has been established that the majority of the petroglyphs at this site belong to the so-called Sikachi-Alyan group, dated to the Neolithic. One of the purposes of the fieldworks in 2025 at the Chertovo Pleso site was to study the mechanisms of the local rock substrate (basalt) transformation during the creation of rock images. This article presents initial observations from a preliminary experimental traceological study of the Chertovo Pleso petroglyphs. The study yielded several key findings. The discovered superficial images originally most likely had a very low relief. It is highly unlikely that these petroglyphs have been smoothed to this extent by weathering processes. A preliminary conclusion is that they were created using direct percussion, involving a series of short, light blows without several stages of treatment on the same contour. This technique produces a relatively shallow groove while allowing for good control of the blows, enabling the execution of narrow lines. The study confirmed that when working basalt, regardless of the percussion technique chosen (direct or indirect), the depth of the groove can be increased through additional, multi-stage reworking of the contour. This allows for a controlled increase in the depth of the pecked outlines. It is likely that petroglyphs with pronounced relief were executed in this manner. The data obtained create a foundation for further development of this research, not only within the Chertovo Pleso site but also for the rock art of the Lower Amur region

Digital elevation model · Rock art · Tributary · Weathering · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Archaeology and Rock Art Studies · Soil and Environmental Studies