67,000-year-old painting in Indonesia may be world’s oldest cave art

A painting of a red hand found in a cave in Indonesia is believed to be the world’s earliest rock art. 

Discovered in a cave on the island of Sulawesi, experts think the stencil was made by our species at least 67,800 years ago. 

This is 15,000 years earlier than the previous discovery in the same region. 

While the stencil was likely based on a human hand, it was altered before being used on the cave wall. 

Its creator had deliberately narrowed the negative outlines of the fingers – creating the impression of a claw–like hand. 

According to researchers from Griffith University, the finding could rewrite the origins or human creativity. 

What’s more, its discovery could advance our understanding of exactly how and when Australia – which is just south of Sulawesi – first came to settled.

‘It is very likely that the people who made these paintings in Sulawesi were part of the broader population that would later spread through the region and ultimately reach Australia,’ explained team lead Dr Adhi Agus Oktaviana. 

The hand stencil was found preserved in limestone caves in southeastern Sulawesi, on the satellite island of Muna. 

Using advanced uranium–series dating techniques, the team analysed microscopic mineral deposits to understand exactly when the stencil was created. 

The results revealed a minimum age of 67,800 years – making it the oldest reliably dated cave art ever discovered. 

An analysis of the stencil itself suggests it was deliberately altered to give the impression of a claw. 

However, the symbolic meaning of this remains unclear.  

‘This art could symbolise the idea that humans and animals were closely connected, something we already seem to see in the very early painted art of Sulawesi, with at least one instance of a scene portraying figures that we interpret as representations of part–human, part–animal beings,’ Professor Adam Brumm, co–lead author of the study said.

Alongside the hand stencil, the researchers found paintings of a much more recent origin – around 20,000 years.

This suggests the Muna cave was used for making art over an ‘exceptionally long period’, according to the researchers. 

‘It is now evident from our new phase of research that Sulawesi was home to one of the world’s richest and most longstanding artistic cultures, one with origins in the earliest history of human occupation of the island at least 67,800 years ago,’ said Professor Maxime Aubert, co–lead author of the study.

Beyond rewriting the origins of human creativity, the findings could also shed light on the settlement of Sahul – the supercontinent that encompassed what is now Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea – which is just south of Sulawesi. 

Until now, scientists have been divided on the timing and route for humans’ arrival. 

Some have suggested they arrived at least 65,000 years ago, while others are adamant it’s more like 50,000 years ago. 

Meanwhile, certain studies indicate a northern route to the New Guinea portion of this landmass via Sulawesi and the ‘Spice Islands’, while others have put forward a more southerly route directly to the Australian mainland via Timor or adjacent islands. 

The new cave art helps to settle both of these debates – suggesting the first Australians arrived at least 65,000 years ago via the northern route. 

‘With the dating of this extremely ancient rock art in Sulawesi, we now have the oldest direct evidence for the presence of modern humans along this northern migration corridor into Sahul,’ said the study’s co–lead author, Professor Renaud Joannes–Boyau.

CAVE ART: WORKS DATING BACK 40,000 YEARS HAVE BEEN FOUND

The most famous cave art can be found in Spain and France, but it exists throughout the world.

The famed Upper Palaeolithic cave art of Europe dates back to around 21,000 years ago. 

In recent years scholars have recorded cave art found in Indonesia that is believed to be about 40,000 years old – predating the most popular European cave art.

Expert Shigeru Miyagawa authored a study in 2018 which examined cave art to try to shed light on how human language evolved. 

He said: ‘Cave art is everywhere. Every major continent inhabited by homo sapiens has cave art.

‘You find it in Europe, in the Middle East, in Asia, everywhere – just like the human language.’