RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Oldest cave art found in Sulawesi
JF Science Advances
JO Sci Adv
FD American Association for the Advancement of Science
SP eabd4648
DO 10.1126/sciadv.abd4648
VO 7
IS 3
A1 Brumm, Adam
A1 Oktaviana, Adhi Agus
A1 Burhan, Basran
A1 Hakim, Budianto
A1 Lebe, Rustan
A1 Zhao, Jian-xin
A1 Sulistyarto, Priyatno Hadi
A1 Ririmasse, Marlon
A1 Adhityatama, Shinatria
A1 Sumantri, Iwan
A1 Aubert, Maxime
YR 2021
UL http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/7/3/eabd4648.abstract
AB Indonesia harbors some of the oldest known surviving cave art. Previously, the earliest dated rock art from this region was a figurative painting of a Sulawesi warty pig (Sus celebensis). This image from Leang Bulu’ Sipong 4 in the limestone karsts of Maros-Pangkep, South Sulawesi, was created at least 43,900 years ago (43.9 ka) based on Uranium-series dating. Here, we report the Uranium-series dating of two figurative cave paintings of Sulawesi warty pigs recently discovered in the same karst area. The oldest, with a minimum age of 45.5 ka, is from Leang Tedongnge. The second image, from Leang Balangajia 1, dates to at least 32 ka. To our knowledge, the animal painting from Leang Tedongnge is the earliest known representational work of art in the world. There is no reason to suppose, however, that this early rock art is a unique example in Island Southeast Asia or the wider region.