The Angono petroglyphs

Not all cultural property is to be found within the walls of the three buildings of the National Museum of the Philippines in Manila. One of the most intriguing prehistoric artifacts, the Angono petroglyphs, is nestled inside the Eastridge Golf and Country Club, Binangonan, Rizal. In 1965, Carlos V. Francisco, future National Artist for Painting, made public his discovery of rock art, or drawings carved into a rock shelter in Angono. He believed these to be prehistoric. Francisco contacted his friend and patron, Alejandro R. Roces, a future National Artist for Literature who at the time was secretary of education and an inspection tour was organized by then National Museum Director Galo Ocampo. The group was composed of archaeologist Alfredo Evangelista, cartoonist Nonoy Marcelo, and the choreographer of the Bayanihan Dance Troupe, Lucrecia Urtula, future National Artist for Dance.

Marcelo documented the inspection of the petroglyphs in a series of quick, humorous sketches that depicted Francisco calling out to them, Ocampo slipping on a slope, and Urtula copying each of the many gestures of the human figures carved on the rock wall, memorizing each one to be set in dance. Marcelo also sketched some of the figures that were clearly visible on the cave wall more than half a century ago.

In my last visit before the pandemic, I was met by a confused and confusing sign that referred to the artifacts as the “Angono-Binangonan Petroglyphs Site.” City boundaries have been redrawn in the last 50 years so the rock shelter that once fell in the jurisdiction of Angono are now in Binangonan that asserted its rights for naming and branding. Nevertheless, the artifacts are still known today as the Angono petroglyphs. Beside the very unwelcoming welcome sign is another sign with a list of do’s and don’ts that includes vandalism or leaving your name on the rock shelter. To access the site, you have to pass through a short, dark tunnel whose sides are slowly filling up with the names of visitors who cannot vandalize the actual site anymore because people are now confined to a viewing deck and prohibited from getting close to the rock shelter. People sign not just on the tunnel walls, but even on the poor cacti that line the path to the petroglyphs. You will see the names and doodles of vandals carved in before the National Museum tightened security, I hope there is special place in hell reserved for them.

The Angono petroglyphs are the oldest known work of art in the Philippines dating to the late Neolithic period or before 2,000 BC, based on archaeological artifacts that were found in the site. It consists of 127 human and animal figures carved into the side of a rock shelter, made by a number of individuals who frequented the shelter over time. You actually need binoculars to see these up close from the viewing deck constructed to deter further vandalism.

Lizards and frogs are quite clear, while some of the drawings appear like giant cockroaches to me. The human figures are like stick drawings of a child, but are more mature because in their open hands, raised arms, and legs bent into a squat, these depict movements and gestures for ritual, dance, or perhaps early drama. Some human figures overlap, making one wonder if this is a crowd scene, or if some of the figures depict childbirth or intercourse. I was told that some images are older than the rest, that the drawings were made over time, maybe over generations.

Each time I visit I try to see as much as I can, and on each visit I always see something new, a detail I had not noticed before. Most of the legible drawings are grouped on one side of the cave, but what about drawings that had eroded over time? What about drawings that were faint or unfinished? If I can change exposure, brilliance, contrast, brightness on my photos of the petroglyphs could we do the same for the actual artifacts? Can we uncover more using better lighting and equipment? Can closer inspection tell us what tools they used and how they drew? Did people live in the rock shelter or did they live elsewhere and only used the site occasionally? So many questions that need answers. So many questions that might be answered by high-resolution photographs or a 3D scan of the entire cave shelter.

As the rock shelter is open to the elements, the Angono petroglyphs will erode, fade, and deteriorate over time such that the drawings visible today may not be visible to future generations. I once asked aloud, what would it take to cut out the petroglyphs from the side of the cave and bring them to the National Museum for preservation and access? Of course, the idea was immediately shot down as this national cultural treasure is supposed to remain in situ while we wish for the best. Are these the only petroglyphs that have survived to our time or are there more in other parts of the archipelago that are waiting to be found? At the moment, the Angono petroglyphs are all we have, so I highly recommend visiting them while they are visible. It should be on the bucket list of every Filipino who is interested in finding his origins.

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