Pakistan's petroglyphs are concentrated along the Karakoram Highway in Gilgit-Baltistan, where more than 50,000 rock carvings and around 5,000 inscriptions have been recorded at about ten major sites between Hunza and Shatial. The three groups most visitors can reach are around Chilas, at Shatial bridge and at the Sacred Rock of Hunza near Ganish. Many of the Chilas and Shatial carvings lie in the area the Diamer-Bhasha dam reservoir will flood, so these are among the few heritage sites in the country with a limited future.
This guide explains what the carvings are, where the main sites sit, what is being done about the dam, and how to see them safely.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| Main area | Upper Indus and Hunza valleys, Gilgit-Baltistan |
| Recorded | 50,000+ carvings and about 5,000 inscriptions |
| Age | From prehistoric hunting scenes to Buddhist art of the 1st millennium AD |
| Easiest sites | Chilas, Sacred Rock of Hunza (Haldeikish) |
| Best months | May to October; Babusar usually opens in late May or June |
| Entry | No fee, no fencing, no visitor centre |
| Time needed | 30 to 90 minutes per site |
What are the petroglyphs of Pakistan?
They are images and writing pecked or chiselled into boulders and rock faces beside the Indus and Hunza rivers. The oldest were hammered with stone tools and are now covered by a dark patina that helps show their age. The earliest are thought to go back several thousand years, though published estimates of how far differ widely.
The oldest show ibex, markhor, hunters and handprints. Later come stupas, seated Buddhas and Jataka stories from the life of the Buddha, mostly from the first millennium AD, and inscriptions in Kharosthi, Brahmi, Sogdian, Bactrian, Chinese and Tibetan scripts, left by traders, pilgrims and local rulers using the route that the Karakoram Highway now follows.
Much of what is known comes from German and Pakistani expeditions led by Karl Jettmar and Volker Thewalt from 1979, and from the archaeologist Ahmad Hasan Dani, who worked out the main phases of the carvings.
Where are the main sites?
Chilas
Chilas has the densest and best-known panels, in groups that researchers call Chilas I and Chilas II, with more across the river at Thalpan. Chilas is also the natural overnight stop on the Babusar route north. Our guide to the Chilas rock carvings covers the individual panels and how to find them.
Shatial
Shatial bridge, about 60 km west of Chilas, was a junction of old routes to Swat, Gilgit and Chitral. More than 1,000 inscriptions and 700 petroglyphs have been recorded there. Its fame comes from over 550 inscriptions in Sogdian, left by Iranian merchants between the 3rd and 7th centuries, including one by a man from Samarkand named Nanaivandak asking for safe passage to rejoin his brother. There are also Bactrian, Middle Persian and Parthian inscriptions, and a large panel showing a stupa with the Sibi Jataka.
Shatial lies on the stretch of the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas that the UK government advises against all travel on. Most visitors coming from Islamabad by the Babusar road will not pass it, and it is not a site to detour to without checking current conditions with local police.
The Sacred Rock of Hunza
The Sacred Rock, or Haldeikish, sits beside the Karakoram Highway between Ganish and Attabad Lake. The name means "place of many male ibex", and ibex are everywhere on it. It also carries inscriptions in Kharosthi, Brahmi, Sogdian and Sarada scripts, some naming Kushan rulers. It is the easiest site in the country to see, a few minutes' drive from Karimabad, and you can combine it with the drive to Attabad. See our Sacred Rock of Hunza guide.
Other carvings worth knowing
Smaller sites reward a stop if you are passing. The Kargah Buddha near Gilgit and the Manthal Buddha Rock near Skardu are large single carvings rather than galleries. Gogdara in Swat has early rock carvings too, but the UK currently advises against all travel to Swat, so check the situation before planning it.
Why will the Diamer-Bhasha dam flood them?
The Diamer-Bhasha dam is being built on the Indus downstream of Chilas, and its reservoir will cover about 100 square kilometres of the valley. The river terraces where travellers camped and carved are exactly the land that will go under. Reports in Dawn and Pamir Times put the total within the affected area at more than 50,000 carvings and about 5,000 inscriptions.
Two things are being done. In February 2024 WAPDA awarded a PKR 46.5 million contract to digitise the threatened carvings with terrestrial laser scanning and 3D models, as part of a cultural heritage plan that also proposes a museum and cultural tourism around Chilas.
The dam's timetable keeps slipping. In August 2026 reports said completion had been pushed back towards the end of the decade, so the low-lying sites are still visible for now. Vandalism, graffiti, quarrying for building stone and road widening are damaging carvings in the meantime.
How do you visit?
From Islamabad, the usual summer route is through Naran and over Babusar Pass to Chilas, then on to Gilgit and Hunza. Our Chilas travel guide has a plan for an evening and morning there.
When you reach a site:
- Don't touch, chalk, wet or trace the carvings to make them show up in photographs. All of these damage the surface.
- Go early or late. Low sun picks out the pecked lines better, and Chilas is very hot at midday in summer.
- Wear proper shoes and carry water. The boulders sit on loose scree, with no paths, railings or facilities.
Is it safe to visit the Chilas carvings?
Pakistani tourists drive through Chilas every summer on the Babusar route, and the town is a normal overnight stop. Diamer district has seen attacks on security forces in 2026: three police were killed in an ambush in the Thore valley near Chilas on 15 April, and a Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts patrol was fired on near Chilas on 28 September, injuring three. Check local news and police advice before you go, travel in daylight, and don't wander far from the highway. Visitors from abroad should read their own government's advice, especially for the Karakoram Highway south and west of Chilas.
Is it worth seeing the petroglyphs?
For anyone interested in history, yes. Few places let you stand in front of a 1,500-year-old message from a Samarkand merchant with no barrier and no crowd. The Sacred Rock of Hunza takes ten minutes, and Chilas an hour if you are overnighting there.
They are less rewarding for small children or anyone expecting a curated site, since there are no signs, guides or shade, and the faint images take patience to read. For more ways to fill a northern trip, see our experiences page.
Frequently asked questions
Where are the petroglyphs in Pakistan?
Mostly along the Karakoram Highway in Gilgit-Baltistan, concentrated at about ten sites between Hunza and Shatial, with the largest groups around Chilas.
How old are the Chilas rock carvings?
They span several thousand years, from prehistoric hunting scenes to Buddhist carvings and inscriptions of the first millennium AD.
Will the Diamer-Bhasha dam destroy the rock carvings?
Its reservoir will submerge many of the Chilas-area carvings when it fills. WAPDA has commissioned 3D digitisation so that a record survives.
Is there an entry fee for the Sacred Rock of Hunza?
No. It is an open roadside site beside the Karakoram Highway between Ganish and Attabad Lake.
What scripts are found on Pakistan's rock inscriptions?
Kharosthi, Brahmi, Sogdian, Bactrian, Sarada, Chinese, Tibetan, Middle Persian and Parthian have all been recorded, reflecting the many travellers who used the route.
