Upper Indus: Rock Art & Inscriptions
WAKSAW is partnering with the Department of Religion and Culture at Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU) on ongoing documentation and interpretation of rock carvings (petroglyphs) and inscriptions along the Upper Indus River in northern Pakistan. The project builds on work led by WLU scholars and collaborators since 2017 and continues under SSHRC funding.
Funding & Acknowledgments
The site and research draw upon support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) through a Partnership Development Grant (2017–2020) and an Insight Grant (2021–2026). Additional support comes from The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Global and the WAKSAW-Uddiyana Archaeological Alliance.
Project leadership & collaborators
Since inception, the Upper Indus project has involved an international team. Current work on Epigraphic and Petroglyphic Complexes of the Upper Indus is co-directed by Debra Foran (WLU) and Ali Zaidi (WLU), with earlier development-phase leadership by Jason Neelis (WLU), Murtaza Taj (LUMS), and Laurianne Bruneau (MAFIL).
Why this matters now
Tens of thousands of carvings and inscriptions (1st–8th c. CE) are concentrated along a river corridor facing inundation from the Diamer-Bhasha Dam project, underscoring the urgency of comprehensive documentation and public access to the materials.
WAKSAW’s role
As a supporting partner, WAKSAW-Uddiyana Archaeological Alliance contributes outreach and coordination to amplify the project’s preservation, research, and public-education objectives.