Discovered in a French cave sealed for tens of thousands of years, the oldest known engravings in Europe were probably not made by modern humans, but rather by Neanderthals.
An exceptional cave
You will find the La Roche-Cotard cave in France, on the banks of the Loire, near the village of Langeais. Sealed by sediments until the end of the 19th century, the site is known for its important archaeological and paleontological remains which have revealed valuable information about the history of the region. We know in fact that the places were occupied by prehistoric populations several tens of thousands of years ago, as evidenced by the discovery of stone tools, animal bones and remains of dwellings.
One of the most important discoveries of the La Roche-Cotard cave is also the presence of parietal engravings isolated on rock walls, but who is at the origin? For decades, researchers thought these creations were characteristic of modern human behavior. After all, Homo sapiens is, for example, credited with a 45,500-year-old drawing of a pig in Indonesia and even one in South Africa. However, researchers have recently uncovered older examples of non-utilitarian objects and art in Europe and other parts of the world created not by our ancestors, but by Neanderthals.
Regarding the La Roche-Cotard cave, anthropologists have isolated at least eight panels representing more than 400 traces of abstract lines and dots. They are considered “engravings” insofar as they represent a deliberate removal of material.
Intentional carvings of our close cousins
To understand how and by whom these engravings were made, researchers set up an experiment in a similar cave. Details of this new work are published in the journal PLOS One. One person was tasked with recreating the same marks using their fingers, bones, wood, flint and metal points against the rock face. Using photogrammetry methods (a technique that uses hundreds of photos to create virtual 3D models), the researchers were then able to compare these experimental marks with prehistoric works. It emerged from these analyzes that these engravings had been done with fingers.
To determine whether these traces were the work of modern humans or Neanderthals, the researchers then used a technique called optically stimulated luminescence of sediments to determine when they were last exposed to daylight. Analysis revealed that the cave had been sealed ago at least 57,000 years old and maybe as long as there is 75 000 ans.
However, current evidence suggests that our ancestors were not present in France before at least 54,000 years old. On the other hand, we know that our Neanderthal cousins were present in the region since at least 300,000 years old. For researchers, it is therefore highly unlikely that anatomically modern humans would have had access to the interior of the cave. Therefore, they are probably not the authors of these engravings.
This study is important because it extends the antiquity of the fingermarks and associates them for the first time with a species of hominid other than Homo sapiens. It also confirms that the culture of our Neanderthal cousins was more complex and diverse than previously thought.
The discovery of these engravings also revolutionizes our understanding of the transmission and evolution of art across different hominid species. Contrary to the idea that symbolic art emerged exclusively with Homo sapiens, these Neanderthal traces demonstrate an aptitude for abstract representation, perhaps even a form of visual communication between groups. This raises fascinating new questions: Did Neanderthals possess a shared artistic culture and visual conventions similar to modern humans? Could these carvings reflect specific rituals or beliefs? If so, human artistic heritage could find its roots much further back in the past than previously believed.
These findings also highlight the importance of natural environments in the development of symbolic behaviors. The rock and the walls of the caves, with their textures, their shapes, and their echoes, could have played a fundamental role in the inspiration and transmission of these engravings. It is possible that these spaces served as gathering places or rituals for Neanderthals, encouraging the emergence of forms of collective expression. The La Roche-Cotard cave thus becomes an exceptional testimony to the dialogue between the cognitive capacities of Neanderthals and their environment, offering a unique perspective on the way in which the first hominids began to interact with the world around them.
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