This article presents the earliest period of petroglyph studies in China which the authors have labeled as «Prescientific». The first purposeful fixation of rock-art objects all over the world was created through folklore stories, which later transmitted into written pieces of work such as treaties and annals (among these chronicles was also the famous «Records of the Grand Historian» by Sima Qian). Due to the highly developed written tradition within Chinese civilization, this process was established earlier than in most other countries. The first attempts were made in order to explain the origin of petroglyphs - as a rule, by way of using rather popular mythologems (such as «footprints of a giant»). The most prominent role within this period (during the Medieval and New history epochs) was undertaken by geographical and local history descriptions. Among many, one of the most notable is «The Canon of waters, with commentary» («Shui jing zhu») created by Li Daoyuan in the beginning of the 6th century. This work mentions 19 sites which feature petroglyphs, with accurate descriptions and spatial references, legends connected with these sites (if any), as well as information about the cultic use of these monuments by locals which according to local records (zhi), lasted for a long time. All presented materials about rock-art in China obtained during the prescientific period represent a valuable source of knowledge about the significance of traditional art in the ever-changing Universe.
本文介绍中国刻在岩石上的文字研究的最早阶段，作者将其称为“科学前的”。世界上第一个有目的的对岩石艺术品的固定是通过民间传说故事创建的，后来又转移到书面作品中，例如条约和纪事。由于中华文明高度发达的书面传统，这一过程比其他大多数国家早。最初的尝试是为了解释岩画的起源-通常是通过使用相当流行的神话词（例如“巨人的足迹”）来解释的。在这段时期（中世纪和新历史时期），最重要的角色是地理和地方历史描述。其中最引人注目的是李道元在6世纪初创作的《水经注》。该作品提到了19个带有岩画的遗址，并带有准确的描述和空间参考，与这些遗址相关的传说（如果有的话），以及有关当地人根据当地记录对这些纪念碑进行文化使用的信息。在科学前期获得的所有关于中国岩画的介绍材料，都是了解传统艺术在日新月异的宇宙中的重要意义的宝贵资源。