New evidence reaffirms that cave art on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi is the oldest known in the world, according to a study that now dates the enigmatic paintings to 51,200 years ago.
The findings push back the timescales on human activity on Sulawesi, raising new questions about the origins of the island’s ancient art and its relationship to early human migrations.
Recent studies involving advanced laser ablation techniques examined the images on the cave’s walls, which include ancient depictions of animals like pigs and bovines along with stick renderings of anthropomorphic shapes. The new analysis reveals that the art is likely several thousands of years older than previously thought.
However, the extreme age of the art within the cave may point to another intriguing possibility: that its creators were not modern humans, and instead may have been one of our ancient hominin cousins. Such a discovery, if proven, would have profound implications for the origins of figurative art and the cognitive capabilities of our now-extinct hominin relatives.
The Enigma of Sulawesi
Renowned for its ancient cave paintings, Sulawesi has long fascinated archaeologists. Among the island’s most notable works of cave art include a 14-foot-wide panel that depicts crude imagery of early humans hunting what are commonly believed to be warty pigs and dwarf bovines with spears.
Past work had already revealed the presence of what archaeologists recognized as some of the world’s oldest rock art on the island. A process known as solution uranium-series (or U-series) was used to analyze calcite deposits that had formed over the art on the walls of Maros-Pangkep, a rock art location on the southern portion of the island. This technique, which scans rock walls without taking physical samples, provides a more accurate estimate by distinguishing between layers of sediment.
However, in their recent study, researchers led by Indonesian archaeologist Adhi Augus Oktaviana used what they describe as “a novel application of this approach,” called laser-ablation U-series imaging, which allowed them to more accurately date some of the earliest cave art in the area.
In a recent study detailing their work, the researchers write, “This method provides enhanced spatial accuracy,” resulting in older minimum ages for previously dated art.
Redating the World’s Oldest Cave Art
The new analysis revealed remarkable results. A hunting scene found at the Leang Bulu’ Sipong 4 location, previously dated to at least 43,900 years ago during previous analysis, has now been revealed to have a minimum age closer to 51,200 years ago, making the art at the location at least 4,040 years older than initial estimates had placed it.
“Painted at least 51,200 years ago, this narrative composition, which depicts human-like figures interacting with a pig, is now the earliest known surviving example of representational art and visual storytelling in the world,” the authors of the new study state.
The authors add that their new analysis reveals a much deeper origin of figurative portrayals of animals and humans than previously recognized.
Of course, revising the dates of the cave art on Sulawesi raises new questions about what species of ancient hominin had actually served as the ancient artists in residence. According to most commonly accepted timelines, modern humans are believed to have left Africa as recently as 50,000 to 60,000 years ago, although possibly as early as 90,000 years ago.
Considering those nearer estimates for when these ancient migrations might have begun, it does raise questions about how likely it is that modern humans could have been present on Sulawesi by the time the newly redated cave art was produced. The earliest known modern human remains on the island date back to no earlier than 25,000 years ago, although evidence of human presence in the form of rock shelters and stone tool use has been found that suggests humans may have been there far earlier, even as much as 118,000 years ago.
While the possibility of modern humans arriving on the island that long ago presents a challenging question, there is little doubt that our ancient hominin cousins were present on Sulawesi by then. Past fossil discoveries have presented compelling evidence of the presence of hominins on the island as far back as 194,000 years ago.
Challenging Old Theories
While pushing back the timescales for the use of figurative art on the island of Sulawesi and raising questions about what species could have made it, the new findings also challenge past ideas that attribute the origins of such art to Europe toward the end of the Ice Age.
The team’s discoveries also suggest that it is possible humans may have been creating such art long before their arrival in Asia, if not even further back to times before modern humans are believed to have left Africa; a controversial possibility that some researchers, including British anthropologist Chris Stringer, have begun to propose in recent years.
However, if it were ever proven that some other hominin species had possessed the necessary cognitive development required to create figurative art so long ago, it would potentially upend our existing ideas about the capabilities of our early human ancestors and their hominin relatives.
At the very least, the authors concede in their study that the new findings suggest “a rich culture of storytelling developed at an early period in the long history of H. sapiens in this region — in particular, the use of scenic representation to tell visual stories about human-animal relationships.”
The new paper, led by Oktaviana et al. and titled “Narrative cave art in Indonesia by 51,200 years ago,” appeared in the journal Nature on July 3, 2024.
Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. He can be reached by email at micah@thedebrief.org. Follow his work at micahhanks.com and on X: @MicahHanks.