Hurricanelover
Diamond Member
- Oct 4, 2021
- 3,538
- 4,131
- 1,938
Neanderthal cave engravings identified as oldest known, more than 57,000 years old
phys.org
by Public Library of Science
Humans and our spin offs have been on this planet for hundreds of thousands of years! We're part of the animal kingdom.

Neanderthal cave engravings identified as oldest known, more than 57,000 years old
Markings on a cave wall in France are the oldest known engravings made by Neanderthals, according to a study published June 21, 2023, in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Jean-Claude Marquet of the University of Tours, France and colleagues.
Markings on a cave wall in France are the oldest known engravings made by Neanderthals, according to a study published June 21, 2023, in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Jean-Claude Marquet of the University of Tours, France and colleagues.
Research in recent decades has revealed a great deal about the cultural complexity of Neanderthals. However, relatively little is known about their symbolic or artistic expression. Only a short list of symbolic productions are attributed to Neanderthals, and the interpretation of these is often the subject of debate. In this study, Marquet and colleagues identified markings on a cave wall in France as the oldest known Neanderthal engravings.
The cave is La Roche-Cotard in the Center-Val de Loire of France, where a series of non-figurative markings on the wall are interpreted as finger-flutings, marks made by human hands. The researchers made a plotting analysis and used photogrammetry to create 3D models of these markings, comparing them with known and experimental human markings. Based on the shape, spacing, and arrangement of these engravings, the team concluded that they are deliberate, organized and intentional shapes created by human hands.
Humans and our spin offs have been on this planet for hundreds of thousands of years! We're part of the animal kingdom.