‘Rain snakes’ from the Senqu River: new light on Qing’s commentary on San rock art from Sehonghong, Lesotho Sam Challis*, Jeremy Hollmann and Mark McGranaghan Rock Art Research Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, PO Wits 2050, Johannesburg, South Africa Previously unpublished rock art in Lesotho, southern Africa, is believed to explain the words of Qing — the San (Bushman) man who gave interpretations of paintings in the vicinity. Published in 1874, his testimony, when closely read and compared with other sources, has since become the single most important source for the decipherment of rock art in the sub-continent. One seemingly incompre- hensible phrase, though, concerning the famous rain-making depiction at Sehonghong Shelter, Lesotho, has worried scholars for some time. Here, we make a connection that sets Qing’s words within the context of the other rock art sites, and the greater cosmology, that he knew. Far from being too young, uninitiated or unfamiliar with the mythology and religion, as this painted site — Rain Snake Shelter — shows, Qing was more than conversant with San cosmology and ritual practice. His testimony is therefore more reliable than was hitherto granted. Keywords: San rock art; snakes; rain; mythology Qing; Orpen; Sehonghong De l’art rupestre du Lesotho, jusqu’ici non publié, semble expliquer les propos de Qing, l’informateur San qui fournit des interprétations des peintures de cette zone. Publié en 1874, le témoignage de Qing est depuis devenu - lorsqu’il est lu attentivement et comparé avec d’autres documents — la source la plus importante pour le décryptage de l’art rupestre en Afrique méridionale. Une phrase qui paraissait incompréhensible, concernant une représentation d’un rituel de la pluie àl’abri sous roche de Sehonghong, Lesotho, perturbe depuis un certain temps les chercheurs. Nous faisons ici une connexion qui place les mots de Qing dans le contexte d’autres sites rupestres et de la cosmologie plus vaste qu’il connaissait. Ce site — Rain Snake Shelter — montre que, loin d’être trop jeune, non-initié ou peu familier avec la mythologie et la religion, Qing était tout à fait informé de la cosmologie et la pratique rituelle san. Il s’ensuit que son témoignage est plus fiable que l’on n’avait jusqu’ici pensé. Introduction Opposite the junction of the Sehonghong and Senqu (Orange/Gariep) Rivers in Lesotho, southern Africa, and about a kilometre upstream is an outcrop of sandstone forming a row of small shelters, in one of which a large snake-like motif is depicted. The first researchers to discover it were Patricia Vinnicombe and Patrick Carter in 1971 during the field season when Sehonghong rock-shelter itself was first excavated (Carter 1978) 1 . Two of the current authors (Sam Challis and Jeremy Hollmann) made *Email: sam@rockart.wits.ac.za Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa, 2013 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0067270X.2013.797135 # 2013 Taylor & Francis Downloaded by [The Library, University of Witwatersrand] at 06:53 24 July 2013