A visitor (C) learns the art of rubbing during the Yinshan Rock Carving Art exhibition in Athens, Greece on April 11, 2019. The Yinshan Rock Carving Art exhibition from China was launched at the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation here on Thursday to introduce the primitive art of petroglyph to Greek audience. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

ATHENS, April 12 (Xinhua) -- The Yinshan Rock Carving Art exhibition from China was launched at the Michael Cacoyannis Foundation here on Thursday to introduce the primitive art of petroglyph to a Greek audience.

The global exhibition, supported by the China National Arts Fund and organized by Shenyang Normal University, traveled to Greece from Italy to present a gem of China's prehistoric civilization.

Traced back to 30,000 years ago, Yinshan Rock Art demonstrates how the ancestors of various ethnic groups began to record their lives, express themselves and communicate feelings through rock carving.

In the Yin Mountains, which stretch from Inner Mongolia to northern Hebei province, the rock's surface has been incised, carved or abraded with over 10,000 ancient cliff rock paintings.

The exhibition includes more than 20 sets of rock carving fossil replicas and more than 20 rock carving fossil rubbings.

According to the Chinese delegation, the carving art pieces are dominated by scenes of hunting and feature a wide range of animals. Many of these species have disappeared from the region, but these paintings act as a testament to their presence.

"We hope to cooperate more in the long term with Greek culture experts and use this opportunity for more cultural exchange," said Zhang Peng from Shenyang Normal University in his opening speech.

Wang Chao, cultural attache of the Chinese Embassy in Greece, said that these paintings serve as a reminder of humankind's beginnings. "It's a treasure of ancient Chinese civilization that would bring the two nations closer," he said.

During the exhibition, visitors will have the opportunity to participate in workshops on rock carving and Chinese rubber stamps.

"We see works of art from the first artists who created engravings, which are among the best in the world," Mary Schina, painter and printmaker and distinguished professor emeritus at the Athens School of Fine Arts. "Humans first carved in the cliffs and then painted."

The exhibition runs through April 17.