Researchers have discovered signs of a Paleolithic writing precursor in studies of ancient tools and sculptures dating back 40,000 years, which far eclipse the earliest known use of inscriptions by tens of thousands of years.
The next-oldest comparable artifacts, proto-cuneiform tablets, date only to around 3000 BCE, leaving even the researchers surprised by the complexity and informational content present in such an early symbolic system. For the study, recently published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, two linguists and an archaeologist analyzed more than 3,000 signs carved into 260 Paleolithic objects.
Paleolithic Germany
Between roughly 34,000 and 45,000 years ago, humans produced a mysterious set of lines, notches, dots, and crosses on objects later discovered in caves in present-day Germany. These artifacts are associated with the Swabian Aurignacian culture, which endured for thousands of years and is known for producing distinctive double-perforated beads.
Among the most notable finds is a mammoth ivory figurine, decorated with rows of crosses and dots. Another is an ivory plaque depicting an anthropomorphic lion marked with rows of notches. “Lion-man” imagery was a recurring motif of the period, and at least one additional figure shows similar markings along the arm.
“The four main excavation sites (Hohle Fels, Geißenklösterle, Vogelherd, and Hohlenstein-Stadel) are within hiking distance from one another,” Professor Christian Bentz of Saarland University told The Debrief. “So also the artifacts with sign sequences are a well-circumscribed, regional phenomenon tied to this particular archaeological culture. The Swabian Aurignacian people did not develop a writing system, likely because they did not need it within the context of their hunter-gatherer lifestyle.”
Stone Age humans at the time had already reached a cognitive level comparable to modern humans.
“They were highly skilled craftspeople. You are able to see that they carried the objects with them. A lot of the objects fit right in the palm of your hand. That is another way in which the objects are similar to proto-cuneiform tablets,” archaeologist Ewa Dutkiewicz explained.
Searching for Paleolithic Evidence
The research team traveled across Europe, examining museum collections and excavation sites in search of additional examples of the markings.
“There are many sign sequences to be found on artefacts. We’ve only just scratched the surface,” Dutkiewicz said. “The artefacts date back to tens of thousands of years before the first writing systems, to the time when Homo sapiens left Africa, settled in Europe and encountered Neanderthals.”
Although the Swabian Aurignacian never developed a complete writing system, the team believes the markings served a function similar to writing, helping record information and communicate ideas.
“Our research is helping us uncover the unique statistical properties – or statistical fingerprint – of these sign systems, which are an early predecessor to writing,” Bentz said.
“The Swabian Jura is one of the regions where objects with this type of sign have been found most frequently, but there are, of course, other important regions,” Dutkiewicz explained. “Countless tools and sculptures from the Palaeolithic, or the Old Stone Age, bear intentional sign sequences.”
Examining a Paleolithic Writing Precursor
The team used computational methods to analyze the 3,000 symbols—not to decipher their meaning, but to measure their statistical structure. After digitizing the marks into a database, researchers examined sign frequency, repetition, and predictability to compare them with later writing systems.
“There are plenty of theories, but until now there has been very little empirical work carried out on the basic, measurable characteristics of the signs,” Bentz explained. “Our analyses demonstrate that these sign sequences have nothing to do with the writing systems of today, which represent spoken languages and are characterized by high information density.”
“The statistical properties are vastly different between Aurignacian sign sequences and sequences of genuine writing systems,” Bentz said. “Aurignacian sign sequences have much higher repetition rates and lower information density (entropy rate).
“Also, for the strict definition of ‘writing’ to apply, we would have to demonstrate a link between the spoken language and the sign system, which is not possible in the case of the Swabian Aurignacian,” Bentz added. “The signs on the archaeological objects are frequently repeated – cross, cross, cross, line, line, line. This type of repetition is not a feature found in spoken language.”
What Makes a Written Language
One of the study’s most unexpected findings was how closely the Paleolithic markings resembled early proto-cuneiform statistically. The predictability of the next symbol and the level of repetition were strikingly similar.
“We hypothesized that the early proto-cuneiform script would be more similar to the writing systems of today, especially due to their relative proximity in time,” Bentz said. “Yet the more we studied them, the clearer it became that the early proto-cuneiform script is very similar to the much older Palaeolithic sign sequences.”
Around 5,000 years ago, however, a new type of system appeared—one capable of representing spoken language—and its statistical structure differs significantly.
“The human ability to encode information in signs and symbols was developed over many thousands of years. Writing is only one specific form in a long series of sign systems,” Bentz continued. “We continue to develop new systems for encoding information. Encoding is also the basis of computer systems.”
Understanding these ancient markings suggests that humans have been grappling with the same fundamental challenge for tens of millennia: how to store and transmit information beyond memory.
The paper, “Signs on Stone Age Objects: Precursor to Written Language Dates Back 40,000 Years,” appeared in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on February 23, 2026.
Ryan Whalen covers science and technology for The Debrief. He holds an MA in History and a Master of Library and Information Science with a certificate in Data Science. He can be contacted at ryan@thedebrief.org, and follow him on Twitter @mdntwvlf.