The ancient rock paintings of Mount Huashan in Guanxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China has been included in UNESCO's world heritage list, according to China.org.

The inclusion of the site on the list was announced during the 40^th session of the World Heritage Committee in Istanbul on Friday, July 15.

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In March 2008, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage submitted the site to be included in the world heritage list under the Cultural Heritage category. After years of deliberation, the ancient rock paintings of Mount Huashan has finally made it to the list.

According to the official UNESCO-hosted page of Mount Huashan, the paintings date back to 2,000 years ago.

The paintings depict frog-shaped people, a unique feature in Zhuang art, as well as Luoyue sacrifices, and generally, the Luoyue way of life, experts from Minzu University in Beijing stated.

Furthermore, the painting is evidence of the existence of an extinct ancient Chinese ethnic group called the Luoyue people, also considered as the ancestors of the modern day Zhuang minority. The biggest mystery about the painting, however, was how the Luoyue people managed to paint the rock faces as high as 130 meters.

Guangxi World Heritage Application Office's Lan Riyong explained that the paintings are the only existing record of the extinct Luoyue people

Following the announcement of the site's inclusion in UNESCO's World Heritage list, the Zhuang minority of Chongzuo celebrated.

"We are [so] proud as ethnic Zhuang people," Lyu Xiaofang, a member of the community said, further adding that the inclusion of the site in the list equates to being recognized by the world.

TagsUNESCO, Huashan Mountains, Huashan Rock Paintings