Kasheli Rock Carvings

Kasheli is home to one of the most remarkable prehistoric rock carvings in India. Locally known as katal shilpa (कातळशिल्प), these engravings are believed to be more than 12,000 years old and offer a rare window into the lives of the people who inhabited the Konkan coast in the Mesolithic age.

The giant elephant of Kasheli

The most famous carving at Kasheli is a single colossal figure of an elephant, measuring approximately 18 metres long and 13 metres wide. It is regarded as the largest rock engraving in India and is one of the defining images of Konkan rock art.

The figure was created by incising, picking, carving and abrading the surface of the laterite plateau, a technique used at almost every petroglyph site in the region.

What "katal shilpa" means

In Marathi, katal refers to the hard, flat laterite rock that forms the local plateaus, and shilpa means carving or sculpture. The plateaus themselves are called sada in Marathi. The carvings were made by removing the outer crust of the laterite to expose the lighter stone underneath, producing high-contrast figures that are still clearly visible thousands of years later.

Why it matters

The Kasheli elephant is part of a wider group of over 1,500 petroglyphs spread across more than 70 sites in the Ratnagiri district.
The figures depict human beings, birds, animals, fish, and geometric forms, suggesting a rich symbolic and ritual life.
Together they provide rare evidence of continuous human settlement on the Konkan coast from the Mesolithic period through to the early historic era.
The carvings show clear evolution of artistic technique over time, from simple outlines to more detailed compositions.

Conservation and recognition

The Kasheli site, along with other Konkan petroglyph sites, is protected by the Maharashtra State Archaeology Department and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

In 2022 the Konkan petroglyphs were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List, recognising their global cultural significance and clearing the way for full World Heritage nomination in the future.

Visiting the site

The carving lies on an open laterite plateau near Kasheli village in Rajapur taluka of Ratnagiri district. Visitors are requested to:

Walk only on marked paths to avoid damaging the engraving
Avoid touching, chalking or pouring any liquid on the carvings
Not light fires or leave litter on the plateau
Respect any instructions from local guides and ASI signage

The best time to view the carvings is in the cool, dry months between November and February, ideally in the early morning or late afternoon when low sunlight makes the engraved lines stand out.