AMERICAS · BAJA CALIFORNIA

Sierra de San Francisco

Large human and animal figures

Some human figures are larger than a real person and are painted in red and black.

Museum documentation · free public access, no account required.

Large bichrome anthropomorphic figure in El Ratón cave, Sierra de San Francisco — **PHOTOGRAPH OF THE ORIGINAL · El Ratón cave · Sierra de San Francisco · CC BY-SA 3.0**
Documentary original · Exact correspondence
Documentary photograph of the original or the exact site.
Alejandro David Camargo González · El Ratón cave · Sierra de San Francisco · Inventory: Pinturas rupestres El Ratón · CC BY-SA 3.0
Source and provenance ↗Terms of use ↗

History and context

The human figures of the Gran Mural tradition raise their arms and divide their bodies into large red and black fields. Deer, bighorn sheep, pumas and marine fauna share the shelters. The monumentality demands viewing from afar and thinking of the wall as architecture.

Aridity and difficult access helped preserve an enormous archive: in the region alone around 1,150 sites with paintings, petroglyphs and other manifestations have been registered. Some figures exceed life size and turn human scale into a narrative resource.

Evidence and interpretation

Direct datings from Cueva del Ratón span approximately 5290±80–295±115 BP, while UNESCO summarises the main core with another bracket. The panel in the photograph has no individual date: it is presented as part of an extensive tradition, not as an exact marker of all of it.

Catalogue facts

Date: Broad tradition with direct dates ≈5290–295 BP
Location: Sierra de San Francisco · Baja California Sur, Mexico
Material: Mineral pigments on shelter walls and ceilings
Tradition: Gran Mural
Subject: Bichrome anthropomorphs and large fauna
Scale: Human figures that can exceed life size
Caution: The visible panel has no individual dating

A SHARED TOPIC, DIFFERENT MOMENTS

Objects connected through time

Follow a topic across the collections. A shared tag is a way to compare objects, not proof that one culture influenced another.

The order uses the midpoint of each approximate date range; ranges can overlap. Spacing does not represent elapsed time. Swipe, scroll or use the arrows. With the sequence focused, use ← / →, Home or End.

THE CURRENT OBJECT

Its date is not sufficiently established to place it on the timeline. We keep it here, separate from the dated objects.

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Broad tradition with direct dates ≈5290–295 BP

Sierra de San Francisco

Prehistory

Direct dates of a broad tradition; the panel shown lacks an individual date.

Current record

Pigments14 dated objects

1 / 14In the centre: Engraved ochre from Blombos

Also connected, without a comparable date (8)

These objects are not placed after the others: an unknown date does not mean a more recent object.

BhimbetkaPrehistory · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period
Blue that does not yieldMaya worlds · Documented use from the Classic, c. 300–1500 CE
Eland CavePrehistory · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period
Game Pass ShelterSan histories · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation
KakaduPrehistory · Regional corpus ≈20,000 BP–contemporary era
Leang KarampuangPrehistory · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024
Quinkan CountryPrehistory · Regional art up to ≈27,000 BP · modern continuity
Tassili n’AjjerPrehistory · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE

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Rock art

Current object, without a comparable date: Sierra de San Francisco.

Altamira · Assemblage ≈36,000–13,000 BP · bison ≈18,400–15,300 cal BP · Prehistory
Lascaux · ≈23,500–21,000 cal BP · debated contextual estimate · Prehistory
Cueva de las Manos · Sequence ≈9300–1300 BP · Prehistory

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Bhimbetka · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period · Prehistory
Eland Cave · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period · Prehistory
Engraved stone · Before ≈39,000 cal BP · Prehistory
Game Pass Shelter · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation · San histories
Kakadu · Regional corpus ≈20,000 BP–contemporary era · Prehistory
Leang Karampuang · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024 · Prehistory
Quinkan Country · Regional art up to ≈27,000 BP · modern continuity · Prehistory
Tassili n’Ajjer · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE · Prehistory

Painting

Current object, without a comparable date: Sierra de San Francisco.

Before the San · ≈25.500–23.500 BCE · San histories
Before the name San · ≈25.500–23.500 BCE · San histories
Altamira · Assemblage ≈36,000–13,000 BP · bison ≈18,400–15,300 cal BP · Prehistory
Lascaux · ≈23,500–21,000 cal BP · debated contextual estimate · Prehistory
Before Sumer · mid-6th–5th millennium BCE · Sumer
Cueva de las Manos · Sequence ≈9300–1300 BP · Prehistory
Vasiliki · ca. 2500–2200 BCE · Greek worlds
Before the Greeks · c. 2400–2200 BCE · Greek worlds
Before Vedic India · c. 1900–1300 BCE · Vedic and later Indian worlds
Grey bowl from Hastinapura · c. 1100–800 BCE in the classical sequence of Hastinapura · Vedic and later Indian worlds
Orpheus among the Thracians · circa 440 BCE; attributed to the London Painter E 497. · Thracians
The Attic krater that took on a new life in Cástulo · 4th century BCE · Greek worlds
The Karwa textile · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Pre-Inca cultures
Leipzig Fish Plate · Last third 4th–early 3rd century BCE · Greek worlds
Dove of the Amarejo · 3rd century BCE · Iberians
Vas dels Guerrers · 3rd–early 2nd century BCE · Iberians
Warriors' Vase · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · Iberians
Kalathos of Alcorisa · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Iberians
The walls of San Bartolo · c. 100 BCE · Maya worlds
Ceramics that continued · Last third of the 2nd century BCE–1st century CE · Iberians

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

A vase travels; the rite changes · No individual dating published on this record · Iberians
Bhimbetka · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period · Prehistory
Blue that does not yield · Documented use from the Classic, c. 300–1500 CE · Maya worlds
Eland Cave · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period · Prehistory
Game Pass Shelter · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation · San histories
Kakadu · Regional corpus ≈20,000 BP–contemporary era · Prehistory
Leang Karampuang · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024 · Prehistory
Quinkan Country · Regional art up to ≈27,000 BP · modern continuity · Prehistory
Tassili n’Ajjer · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE · Prehistory

Human imagery

Current object, without a comparable date: Sierra de San Francisco.

Lion-man · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · Prehistory
Hohle Fels · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · Prehistory
Willendorf · ≈29,500 years · Prehistory
Brno II Articulated Figure · ≈28,000 years cal BP · by funerary association · Prehistory
Dolní Věstonice I · ≈29,000–27,000 years · Prehistory
Lespugue · ≈28,000 years · Prehistory
Kostenki I · ≈23,000–21,000 years · Prehistory
Shigir Idol · C. 10,000 BCE · approximation; debated dating · Prehistory
Nahal Hemar mask · Eighth millennium BCE · context dating, not direct dating of the stone · Prehistory
El Miradero spatula-idols · ≈4000–3800 cal BCE · Prehistory
Warka Mask · End of the 4th millennium BCE · Sumer
Cueva de las Manos · Sequence ≈9300–1300 BP · Prehistory
Uruk Vase · ca. 3300–3000 BCE · Sumer
Worshiper of Tell Asmar · Towards 2900–2600 BCE · Sumer
Standard of Ur · ca. 2600–2400 BCE · Sumer
Statue of Ebih-Il · Towards 2400 BCE · Sumer
Akkadian sovereign head · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · Sumer
Bassetki Statue · Akkadian period · 23rd century BCE · Sumer
Before Pre-Inca Cultures · Kotosh-Mito Tradition, c. 2200–1500 BCE; the enclosure is usually situated around 1800 BCE. · Pre-Inca cultures
Queen of the Night · 19th–18th centuries BCE · Sumer
Bull-leaping · c. 1600–1450 BCE · Greek worlds
Wooden faces · c. 1600–1000 BCE, in several phases · Maya worlds
Head 2 · c. 1200–900 BCE · Maya worlds
Ivory in Nimrud · 9th–8th centuries BCE · Phoenicians
Las Limas · c. 1000–600 BCE · Maya worlds
Astarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · Phoenicians
Astarte from El Carambolo · 8th century BCE · Iberians
Lamassu of Khorsabad · Reign of Sargon II · 721–705 BCE · Sumer
The Lanzón · c. 900–500 BCE · Pre-Inca cultures
Offering 4 · c. 800–600 BCE · Maya worlds
Kushite king · c. 721–664 BCE · Nubia, Kerma and Kush
The so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · Phoenicians
The so-called ‘Priest of Cádiz’ · 7th century BCE · Iberians
Heads on the wall · c. 800–300 BCE · Pre-Inca cultures
Shabti of Psamtek · 570–526 BCE · Ancient Egypt
Two voices in an urn · 530–520 BCE · Etruscans and Rome
The god on the roof · Towards 510–500 BCE · Etruscans and Rome
Glazed brick guards · 522–486 BCE · Achaemenid Persia
Twenty-three delegations · 6th–5th centuries BCE, mainly under Darius and Xerxes · Achaemenid Persia
Banquet under leopards · Around 480–470 BCE · Etruscans and Rome
The statue was the urn · First half of the 4th century BCE · Iberians
A battle on a comb · Early 4th century BCE · Scythians and Saka
The Kul-Oba vase · 4th century BCE · Greek worlds
The Solokha gold comb · 4th century BCE · Greek worlds
Faces of the Steppe · Second half of the 4th century BCE · Scythians and Saka
Lady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Phoenicians
Punic head pendant · Mid 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Phoenicians
Lady of Ibiza · 4th–3rd centuries BCE · Iberians
The Raimondi Stele · c. 400–200 BCE according to MNAAHP · Pre-Inca cultures
Chão de Lamas pectoral · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · concealed in the early 1st century BCE · Iberians
Vas dels Guerrers · 3rd–early 2nd century BCE · Iberians
Warriors' Vase · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · Iberians
The dismantled cauldron · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Celtic worlds
The walls of San Bartolo · c. 100 BCE · Maya worlds
Gladiators Cup of Chavagnes · 25–75 CE · Etruscans and Rome
Thracian Gladiator from Cádiz · 67–100 CE · Etruscans and Rome
Torreáguila fountain spout · 101–125 CE · Etruscans and Rome
Articulated doll from Tarragona · Late 3rd–4th century CE · Etruscans and Rome
Seven heads · c. 500–700 CE · Bantu-speaking worlds
Seated figure · 13th century, date attributed by the museum · Mande Worlds
Kongo crucifix · 16th–17th centuries · Bantu-speaking worlds
Kuba ndop · ca. 1760 · Bantu-speaking worlds

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Before Persia · Central core c. seventeenth century BCE; Neo-Elamite additions between the ninth and sixth centuries BCE · Achaemenid Persia
Bhimbetka · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period · Prehistory
Eland Cave · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period · Prehistory
Four offerers · Iberian period · individual dating according to catalogue · Iberians
Game Pass Shelter · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation · San histories
Lararium of Vilauba · Roman period · Etruscans and Rome
Leang Karampuang · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024 · Prehistory
Quinkan Country · Regional art up to ≈27,000 BP · modern continuity · Prehistory
Tassili n’Ajjer · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE · Prehistory
The Thracian Horseman · Roman era · diffusion especially in the 2nd–3rd centuries CE · Thracians

Animal imagery

Current object, without a comparable date: Sierra de San Francisco.

Lion-man · ≈40,000 years · Aurignacian · Prehistory
Before the San · ≈25.500–23.500 BCE · San histories
Before the name San · ≈25.500–23.500 BCE · San histories
Altamira · Assemblage ≈36,000–13,000 BP · bison ≈18,400–15,300 cal BP · Prehistory
Lascaux · ≈23,500–21,000 cal BP · debated contextual estimate · Prehistory
Zaraysk Bison · ≈23,000–21,000 years · Prehistory
Rondelle de Mas-d'Azil · ≈18,000–16,000 years · Prehistory
Lamp from La Mouthe · ≈20,500–13,000 years · Magdalenian framework · Prehistory
Engraved stone from Çakmaktepe · PPNA · site proposal: ≈9600–8800 BCE, provisional · Prehistory
Cueva de las Manos · Sequence ≈9300–1300 BP · Prehistory
Cylinder seal · c. 3500–3100 BCE · Sumer
Queen's Lyre · ca. 2600–2500 BCE · Sumer
The goat from PG 1237 · ca. 2600–2400 BCE · Sumer
Indus seals · ca. 2600–1900 BCE · Indus civilisation
Queen of the Night · 19th–18th centuries BCE · Sumer
Bull-leaping · c. 1600–1450 BCE · Greek worlds
Stag Vessel · 14th–13th centuries BCE · Hittites
Before the Scythians and Sakas · Final Bronze–Initial Iron, ca. 1200–600 BCE · Scythians and Saka
Ivory in Nimrud · 9th–8th centuries BCE · Phoenicians
Lamassu of Khorsabad · Reign of Sargon II · 721–705 BCE · Sumer
The Tello Obelisk · c. 800–500 BCE · Pre-Inca cultures
Ashurbanipal Hunt · 645–635 BCE · Sumer
Banquet under leopards · Around 480–470 BCE · Etruscans and Rome
The oldest knotted carpet · 5th–4th centuries BCE · Scythians and Saka
The silver amphora of Chertomlyk · 4th century BCE · Greek worlds
Thoth in the form of a baboon · 664–30 BCE · Ancient Egypt
Poroina Mare Rhyton · Second half of the 4th century BCE · Thracians
Borovo · 4th century BC C.; 350–300 BCE in the ISAW catalog. · Thracians
Leipzig Fish Plate · Last third 4th–early 3rd century BCE · Greek worlds
Dove of the Amarejo · 3rd century BCE · Iberians
Chão de Lamas pectoral · 3rd–2nd centuries BCE · concealed in the early 1st century BCE · Iberians
Fibula from Lancia · ≈300–100 BCE · Iberians
Horse fibula · 2nd century BCE · disputed chronology · Iberians
The dismantled cauldron · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Celtic worlds
Kalathos of Alcorisa · 2nd–1st centuries BCE · Iberians
Egyptian oil lamp with a fish, held in Laon · 3rd–4th centuries CE · Ancient Egypt
Laon lamp with fish · 3rd–4th centuries CE · Etruscans and Rome
Gold rhinoceros · ca. 1220–1290; found in 1933 · Bantu-speaking worlds
Zimbabwe birds · main period of Great Zimbabwe, c. 12th–15th centuries · Bantu-speaking worlds

Without a comparable date (not part of the chronological order):

Bhimbetka · Mesolithic–historical and medieval period · Prehistory
Eland Cave · Regional tradition of ≈4,000 years · up to historical period · Prehistory
Fawn spear-thrower · Middle Magdalenian · Prehistory
Game Pass Shelter · Regional rock art chronology · panel not dated in isolation · San histories
Kakadu · Regional corpus ≈20,000 BP–contemporary era · Prehistory
Leang Karampuang · Minimum 51,200 years · dating published in 2024 · Prehistory
Tassili n’Ajjer · Corpus ≈6000 BCE–first centuries CE · Prehistory
The Thracian Horseman · Roman era · diffusion especially in the 2nd–3rd centuries CE · Thracians
Trumpet from Numantia · No individual dating published on this record · Iberians

A closer look

About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: September 5, 2026.

Life at the foot of the great murals

A hook from Cueva Pintada, published by the National Museum of Anthropology, combines palm wood, a barrel cactus spine and fibres to reach cactus fruits such as pitahaya. It was recovered associated with a stake dated between 1352 and 1512 CE. It does not date all the shelter's paintings nor the panel in this image, but provides a concrete subsistence context. Alongside monumental bodies on the walls were discreet techniques for gathering food in a landscape of canyons and oases.

Museum · National Museum of Anthropology, INAH · Baja California Hook, 2025Access recorded: September 5, 2026.

Location and territory

REGIONAL AREA

Sierra de San Francisco · MexicoThe Gran Mural tradition occupies several shelters; the marker indicates the approximate serran core.

Sources and references

Discover the paintings of the Sierra de San Francisco

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Sierra de San Francisco

History and context

Evidence and interpretation

Catalogue facts

Objects connected through time

Sierra de San Francisco

Engraved ochre from Blombos

Willendorf

Before the San

Before the name San

Altamira

Lascaux

Kostenki I

Cueva de las Manos

Queen of the Night

Ceramic stand 1010

Banquet under leopards

The Karwa textile

The walls of San Bartolo

Venus in the codex

A closer look

Life at the foot of the great murals

Location and territory

Sources and references

Did you enjoy this exhibit?