4Laas Geel, Somalia

Somalia deserves more than to be viewed from such a one-dimensional perspective. Among its extensive cultural heritage is Laas Geel, described by the British Museum as one of the region’s most important rock art sites, and also the oldest.

Dated by archaeologists to the mid-fourth to mid-third millennia BC, the colorful paintings that adorn the granite rockface depict human figures alongside groups of up to 15 cows.