Color as cultural expression: Comparative perspectives on the symbolic palette in rock paintings of Peru and China

Rock art studies increasingly recognize color as a key semiotic dimension of visual communication across diverse cultural traditions. This study develops an interdisciplinary and comparative approach to examine color as a form of cultural expression in rock paintings from Peru and China, employing a qualitative and interpretive research design grounded in iconographic analysis, chromatic comparison, and archeological and ethnographic review. The objectives are to identify and describe the chromatic palettes present in both regions, to compare their visual and tonal patterns, and to interpret the symbolic meanings associated with color within their respective cosmological frameworks. The corpus included representative panels from the Peruvian Andes (Toquepala, Tecsecocha, Toro Muerto, Lauricocha, and Inkaterra) and from China (Huashan, Helan, Mogao, and Altay/Dunde) within an approximate timeframe of 2000 BCE–1000 CE. Methodologically, the study relied on calibrated photographic documentation, detailed visual observation, systematic classification of hues and contrasts, and a comparative analysis of motifs supported by specialized scholarly sources. The results revealed a predominance of ferruginous red hues in the Andean context, associated with narratives of fertility, reciprocity, and ties to the earth, while the Chinese corpus exhibits greater chromatic diversity linked to hierarchical symbolic structures and dualistic cosmologies. Overall, the study demonstrates that color functions as both a material and symbolic agent that mediates ritual relationships and encodes collective memory, providing a methodological baseline for future cross-cultural research and for heritage conservation initiatives centered on chromatic interpretation.