MURMANSK, June 20. /TASS/. A glass cover stopped destroying of ancient petroglyphs near the Kanozero Lake in the Murmansk Region, the museum’s director Vladimir Perevalov told TASS.
Petroglyphs, a form of rock art, are images created by removing a part of rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading. The glass cover was installed in the Murmansk Region in 2016.
"We can say now that the moss, which used to ruin the images, has died because of the dry and warm climate under the cover," the director said.
The unique complex of Neolithic images is on islands and shores of the Kanozero Lake in the Murmansk Region. There are about 1,200 images of animals, people, Moon and Sun symbols, and scenes of fishing or hunting. The images were found in 1997, and UNESCO has put them on a list of the world’s five biggest Neolithic discoveries. In the natural light, sometimes it is not easy to see the images, and thus tourists used to walk over them. In addition, the spreading moss was destroying the petroglyphs.
Scientists suggested erecting a transparent dome over the images. The exclusive glass cover is 20 meters wide and 10 meters high. In 2014, it was put on a metal base. The lower row of panels may be opened for ventilation. Inside the cover images are highlighted, and tourists may see them any time of the day.