Southern African rock art has been dated to be as old as 28 000 years, with the age of the Cederberg paintings ranging from 8 000 years to 100 or 200 years. The paintings most commonly record animal scenes, and it is thought that particular animals such as eland, have important symbolic religious meanings.

Humans are also commonly depicted, often in procession, hunting or out gathering food. Other types of paintings show therianthropes (half-animal half-human figures) and entoptic shapes, probably of important religious meaning.