Chinese Drought Graffiti
In the Quinling Mountains of China is the Dayu Cave, where, between the sixteenth and nineteenth century, people daubed the cave walls in a very particular type of graffiti. For hundreds of years, during times of drought, the local people, would flee to the caves to offer prayers for rain, which the graffiti records on the cave walls. Around 70 examples of this so-called “drought graffiti” can be seen in the cave today, providing a comprehensive account of climatic upheaval and its effects on local communities.
The graffiti was discovered by accident in 2009 by Liangcheng Tan of the Chinese Academy of Science, who was part of a team collecting samples of mineral deposits. The scientists found that the graffiti were carefully dated and began in the late fifteen hundreds. All recorded prayers for rain. The people who painted these pleas on the cave walls were not just simple country folk but included the regions’ highest officials. “On June 8, 46th year of the Emperor Kangxi period, Qing dynast, the governor of Ningqiang district came to the cave to pray for rainy” read one inscription from 1707.
The drought graffiti went on as late as the nineteenth century- showing a continuous belief that during rainless periods, the gods could offer aid- or else a desperation so strong that people were willing to try anything. In 1891, the local mayor, Huaizong Zhu led more than 200 people to the cave, along with a fortune teller named Zhenrong Ran to hold a ceremony to pray for rain.
The dates of the graffiti correspond to historical records which show how drought had catastrophic effects on local communities. In the sixteenth century, one drought was so severe it led to two harvests failing and mass starvation that culminated in cannibalism. The 1891 episode led to civil unrest. By using the drought graffiti in conjunction with analysis of the levels of carbon dioxide and oxygen in stalagmite formations in the cave, scientists have been able to identify seven drought periods in the last 500 years- and predict when the next one may occur.
But why did the people chose the Dayu cave to make their desperate petitions? The reason is, caves were seen to be the underworld realm of the gods-because even in drought periods, they were cold and wet. In other words, the people were bringing their troubles directly to the place they believed would offer a solution. This belief has led to a graffiti that is utterly unique; the only type in the world to document climatic change. However, the Chinese Drought graffiti is not the only graffiti with a religious slant.