Aïr Mountains

The Aïr Mountains (also known as the Air Massif or Azbine) is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara desert. They rise to more than 6,000 ft (1,830 m).

The town of Agadez in the heart of the Tuareg country is the capital of Aïr. The population of Aïr lead a nomadic life, relying essentially on camel and goats from which they take milk, meat and skins used in the production of local handicrafts. Agriculture products from oases such as Timia and Tabelot are exchanged against clothes, or salt, brought by camel caravans from the remote oases of Bilma and Fachi.

The Aïr is known for its rock art, dating from 6000 BC to around AD 1000. During the earlier eras, it was a pastoral area, illustrated in images of cattle and large mammals, but during the third millennium BC desertification has begun and Tuareg from further north migrated into the region. Later art indicated war, depicting horses and chariots. In particular, a five metre high carving of a giraffe at Dabous discovered in 1999 is internationally famous. Cave art in the region is predominantly rock carving, initially with sharp rock, and from around 1200 BC perhaps with metal. Later the region became a Tuareg confederation under an amenokal.