Liphofung (literally Place of the Eland) is named for the paintings of Africa’s largest antelope left behind on its walls by the San hunter-gatherers who dwelt and performed shamanic rituals in the deep overhang for a period of around 5,000. Other rock art at the site includes depictions of people hunting, stick-fighting and participating in a rainmaking ceremony. Though the paintings are more faded that at other sites in Lesotho such as Ha Baroana and Tsatsane, they are accompanied by excellent explanatory panels that show what they would have looked like in their prime and also place then in a cultural context.
Overhanging Rock, Liphofung Cave, LesothoLiphofung’s other main claim to fame is that the future King Moshoeshoe I, founder of the Sotho Kingdom, sheltered in the overhang when he travelled to the area as a young man, and then used it as a natural sanatorium for injured soldiers during a battle undertaken in 1840.
Traditional Basotho House, Liphofung Cave, LesothoA small Visitors’ Centre incorporating displays about traditional Basotho culture, King Moshoeshoe and San rock art has been developed at the site. From here, it is just a five-minute walk to the overhang along a steep but well-maintained footpath.
