The paintings were discovered on a rocky overhang in 1959[1] by 2/Lt R. L. Rawlings of the 2nd Battalion, 6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles.

[4] The Tambun rock art is on a prominent rockface on the west face of Gunung Panjang, a large karstic hill, nearly 2 kilometres long, overlooking Ipoh and the Kinta valley.

The hill comprises light grey marble belonging to the Devonian limestone of the Kinta Valley.

[5] The Tambun rock art site is the largest display of neolithic paintings in Asia.

[6] At the time of the discovery, the wide shelf at the base of the rock face was littered deep with empty, conical snail shells, all with their tips knocked off.