Prehistoric cave art painted by Neanderthals, says study

Описание: (9 Aug 2021) LEAD IN:
A collection of prehistoric cave paintings in southern Spain was created about 65,000 years ago by Neanderthals, says a new study.
Researchers say it supports the view Neanderthals developed a form of cave art more than 20,000 years before the arrival of modern humans in Europe.

STORY-LINE:
Deep in southern Spain, researchers are exploring humankind's artistic past.
"We are facing the oldest art in Europe, I dare not say the world, but yes, in Europe," says cave technician Gerardo Anaya.
At Ardales Cave, near Malaga on Spain's Iberian Peninsula, a team of European researchers has been studying a type of red ochre pigment found on a large stalagmitic pillar.
Dating of the pigment suggests it was applied on at least two separate occasions, once more than 65,000 years ago and another time between 45,300 and 48,700 years ago - firmly placing its origins in the period of Neanderthal occupation.
One of the study's authors, Professor José Ramos Muñoz from the University of Cádiz, says the new study pushes the origins of art back some 20,000 years:
"At that time, the populations that occupied the south of the Iberian Peninsula were Neanderthal. That's where the interest of dating this art lies, since it goes against the  traditional paradigm of the origin of art - around 40,000 (years), and delays these far-reaching cultural advances in the south of the Iberian Peninsula."
Analysis revealed the pigment was applied by spraying, in some places blowing.
The nature of the pigment did not match natural samples taken from the cave's walls and floor, suggesting it was brought to the cave from outside.
But the study's authors say it's not "art" in a strict sense, rather markings of selected areas of the cave, its symbolic meaning is not yet known.
"What's very interesting is the presence of these markings in places which are difficult to access. They seem to have characteristics of a communication system, which would mark an instruction for another group, who later arrived at that cave, an indication - we don't know what they mean - but it could relate to the topographic location or almost a map practically marking a plan, or at least a means of communication with other communities," says Muñoz.
Ardales Cave, in a mountain range near Malaga, was discovered in 1821, after an earthquake revealed its concealed entrance that had been sealed for more than 8,000 years.
More than a thousand graphic representations cover its walls, but the pigments that make up its paintings were yet to have been studied in detail until now.
"The cave has many paintings, more than 1,000 drawings of animals, human representations, everything. But that painting that we had discovered at the end of the last century, that painting represents the basis of everything else," says Pedro Cantalejo Duarte, an archaeologist and director of Ardales Cave.
Local public officials hope to conserve the cave's artworks, allowing only sustainable tourist visits.
Daily visits are restricted to about 15 people, it's forbidden to take photos or illuminate the works.
"Ardales knew that he had a jewel in his entrails, but we did not know the size that this brought, with the latest news in Ardales, we are very proud to be pioneers in rock art," says Ardales mayor Juan Alberto Naranjo.
The study was published in U.S. journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on Tuesday 3 August.

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