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Theart of the Upper Paleolithic represents the oldest form ofprehistoric art.Figurative art is present inEurope andSoutheast Asia, beginning around 50,000 years ago.[1][2][3] European Upper Paleolithic art is known informally as "Ice Age art", in reference to thelast glacial period.[4]
Non-figurativecave paintings, consisting ofhand stencils and simple geometric shapes, are somewhat older, and possibly as old as 64,000 years. This latter estimate is due to a controversial 2018 study based onuranium-thorium dating, which would implyNeanderthal authorship and qualify asart of the Middle Paleolithic.[5]
The emergence of figurative art has been interpreted as reflecting the emergence of fullbehavioral modernity, and is part of the defining characteristics separating the Upper Paleolithic from theMiddle Paleolithic.[6][7] The discovery of cave art of comparable age to the oldest European samples in Indonesia has established that similar artistic traditions existed both in eastern and in western Eurasia 40,000 years ago. This has been taken to suggest an artistic tradition dating to more than 50,000 years ago, spread along the southern coast of Eurasia in the originalcoastal migration movement.[3] In 2018, the discovery of a figurative painting of an unknown animal was announced; it was over 40,000 years old, and was found in a cave on theIndonesian island ofBorneo.[8][9] In July 2021, scientists reported the discovery of abone carving, one of the world's oldest works of art, made byNeanderthals about 51,000 years ago.[10][11] On July 3, 2024, the journalNature published research findings indicating that thecave paintings, which depictanthropomorphic figures interacting with a pig and measure 36 by 15 inches, in LeangKarampuang are approximately 51,200 years old.[2][3]
Art of the European Upper Paleolithic includes rock andcave painting,jewelry,[12][13] drawing, carving, engraving and sculpture inclay,bone, antler,[14] stone[15] and ivory, such as theVenus figurines, andmusical instruments such asflutes.Decoration was also made on functional tools, such asspear throwers,perforated batons andlamps.Engravings on flat pieces of stones are found in considerable numbers (up to 5,000 at one Spanish site) at sites with the appropriate geology, with the marks sometimes so shallow and faint that the technique involved is closer todrawing – many of these were not spotted by the earliest excavators, and found by later teams in spoil heaps. Painted plaques are less common. It is possible that they were used in rituals, or alternatively heated on a fire and wrapped as personal warmers. Either type of use may account for the many broken examples, often with the fragments dispersed over some distance (up to 30 metres apart at Gönnersdorf). Many sites have large quantities of flat stones apparently used as flooring, with only a minority decorated.[16]
Some of the oldest works of art were found in theSwabian Jura, inBaden-Württemberg, Germany. TheVenus figurine known as theVenus of Hohle Fels and theLöwenmensch (Lion-Human) statuette ofHohlenstein-Stadel both date to approximately 40,000 years ago.[17] The so-calledAdorant from the Geißenklösterle cave dates to about the same time.
Other fine examples of art from the Upper Palaeolithic (broadly 40,000 to 10,000 years ago) includecave painting (such as atChauvet,Lascaux,Altamira, andKapova Cave), incised / engraved cave art such as atCreswell Crags,[18]portable art (such as animal carvings and sculptures like theVenus of Willendorf), and open-air art (such as therock art of the Côa Valley andMazouco [it] in Portugal;Domingo García andSiega Verde in Spain; andFornols-Haut [fr] in France). There are numerous carved or engraved pieces of bone and ivory, such as theSwimming Reindeer found in France from theMagdalenian period. These includespear throwers, including one shaped like a mammoth,[19] and many of the type of objects called abâton de commandement.
The animals depicted primarily consist of prey sought byPaleolithic hunters,includingreindeer,[20]horses,[21]bison,[22]mammoth,[23] thewoolly rhinoceros,[24] and birds (waterfowl),[25][26]as well asapex predators such aslions[27] panthers or leopards,[28]hyenas andbears.
Contemporary depictions of humans are comparatively rare; the most notable specimens are almost exclusivelyVenus figurines, representations of the female form typically placing large emphasis on the breasts and/or buttocks.[29] TheLion-Human statuette ofHohlenstein-Stadel (Aurignacian), an Upper Paleolithic statuette composed of a feline head atop a human (likely female) body, is largely understood as representing a hybrid creature rather than a merely anthropomorphized animal. Other possible hybrid figures includethe Shaman of Trois-Frères, the "Bison-man" (also of Trois-Frères) and a similar representation from theGrotte de Gabillou in theDordogne, and the potentially bird-headed figure as depicted in theLascaux caves' "Shaft of the Dead Man." Male representations from the Paleolithic are rare.Mesolithic examples include the "Pin Hole man" ofCreswell Crags in Derbyshire.
There is evidence for some craft specialization, as well as the transport of materials such as stone and marine shells over considerable distances. Shells from Mediterranean species have been found atGönnersdorf, over 1,000 kilometres (~621 miles) from their native sea coast. Rising sea levels indicate the likely submersion of thelevel and nature of Upper Paleolithic coastal settlements, and thus remain unknown.[30]
Cave paintings from the Indonesian island ofSulawesi, situated in thecaves in the district of Maros, were dated based onUranium–thorium dating in a 2014 study. The oldest dated image was a hand stencil, which was given a minimum age of 39,900 years. A painting of ababirusa was dated to at least 35.4 ka, placing it among the oldest known figurative depictions worldwide.[31]
A cave at Turobong inSouth Korea containing human remains has been found to contain carved deer bones and depictions of deer that may be as much as 40,000 years old.[32] Petroglyphs of deer or reindeer found at Sokchang-ri may also date to the Upper Paleolithic. Potsherds in a style reminiscent of early Japanese work have been found at Kosan-ri onJeju island, which, due to lower sea levels at the time, would have been accessible from Japan.[33]
In November 2018, scientists reported the discovery of the oldest knownfigurative art painting, over 40,000 (perhaps as old as 52,000) years old, of an unknown animal in the cave ofLubang Jeriji Saléh on theIndonesian island ofBorneo.[8][9]
Some Upper Paleolithic artifacts such as theVenus figurines of Mal'ta were found inSouthern Siberia,Russia. These figures consist most often of ivory. The figures are about 20,000 years old and stem from theGravettian.[34] Most of these statuettes show stylized clothes. Quite often the face is depicted. They were discovered atMal'ta, at theAngara River, nearLake Baikal inIrkutsk Oblast, Siberia.
Gabarnmung, or Nawarla Gabarnmung, is an Aboriginal archaeological and rock art site in south-westernArnhem Land, in the Top End of Australia's Northern Territory. The rock shelter features prehistoric paintings of fish, including the barramundi, wallabies, crocodiles, people and spiritual figures. Most of the paintings are located on the shelter's ceiling, but many are found on the walls and pillars of the site. The painting on the ceiling has been securely dated to before 27,000 years ago.[35]
Radiocarbon dating of charcoal excavated from the base of the lowest stratigraphic layer of the floor returned a mean age of45189±1089 years Cal BP suggesting the oldest date for the earliest human habitation. Faceted and use-striated hematite crayons have been recovered from nearby locations (Malakunanja II andNauwalabila 1) in strata dated from 45,000 to 60,000 years old which suggests that the Gabarnmung shelter may have been decorated from its inception.[36]
The Gwion Gwion rock paintings are a unique form of rock art found inWestern Australia. They are predominantly human figures drawn in fine detail with accurate anatomical proportioning. They have been dated at over 17,000 years old.[37]
Upper Paleolithic sites of the Near East, such as theHayonim Cave, a cave located in a limestone bluff about 250 meters above modern sea level, in theUpper Galilee,Israel, have wall carvings depicting symbolic shapes and animals, such as a running horse dated to theLevantine Aurignacian circa 28000 BP, and visible in theIsrael Museum.[38][39][40] This is considered as the first art object found within the context of the Levantine Upper Paleolithic.[39]
Petroglyphs of theNorth African Mesolithic, such as those atTassili n'Ajjer, Algeria, are dated to about 12,000 to 10,000 years old.
The oldest known figurative art fromSub-Saharan Africa are seven stone plaquettes painted with figures of animals found at theApollo 11 Cave complex inNamibia, and dated to between 27,500 and 22,500 years ago.[41][42]There is a substantial amount of rock art attributable to theBushmen (San) found throughout Southern Africa. Much of this art is recent (as evident from the subject matter depicted, including depictions of wagons and of European settlers wearing hats), but the oldest samples have been tentatively dated to as early as 26,000 years ago.[43]
Matobo National Park,Zimbabwe, has many rock paintings. The oldest examples to 7,000 years ago, possibly as early as 13,000 years ago, while the bulk were likely produced between c. 1,700 and 1,500 years ago.[44]Petroglyphs inWest Africa, such as those ofBidzar, Cameroon, are dated to after 3,000 years ago.
Rock paintings in theToquepala Caves in southernPeru are dated at ca. 11,500 years ago.[45] Some of the paintings are figurative, notably including a scene of armed men huntingguanaco cameloids. The men are in a posture of attacking the animals withaxe,lances, andspear throwers (but not including bow and arrow). The paintings are polychrome, with red made fromhematite being the dominant color.[46]
Rock art made by the earliest inhabitants of theAmazon region dates to between 11,800 and 12,600 years ago. The animals depicted include some now extinct, such asmastodons andgiant sloths.[47]
Early burial sites in Peru, such as the one atTelarmachay dating from about 10 ka onward, contained evidence of ritual burial, with deposits of red ocher and bead necklaces marking the site.[48]
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