Cave Paintings
One of the first instances of written
communication were pictograms and among the first pictograms to be used were
cave paintings.
Cave paintings can be found all over the
world, some dating back to almost 40,000 years ago. As the age of these
paintings coincides with a time where Neanderthals still populated the Earth,
it is believed that some of these paintings were created by them, as well as by
Humans. Scientists often use the method of creation to determine how old the
paintings are. Pigments used include red and yellow ochre, hematite, manganese
oxide and charcoal.
The real purpose of these paintings are unknown,
though most theorise that they may have been used in rituals, to communicate
and decorate homes, amongst other things. Common Subjects of these paintings
are usually various wild animals, although ‘hand stencils’ are also seen in
some caves. Any depictions of humans are rare and when seen are very vague,
lacking detail, unlike many of the animal paintings. Many purpose that this is
because of a potential religious taboo that perhaps strictly forbids the
painting of humans.
Henri Breuil, a French archaeologist and
geologist, interpreted many of the animal paintings to be a form of ‘hunting
magic’ believed to have been practiced to increase the population of local
wildlife.
Another man, David Lewis-Williams, a South
African scholar, theorised that these pictograms may have infact been created
by paleolithic shamans. He believed that these shamans moved into deeper
recesses of the caves to enter a trance state and paint their visions.
Many of the more well known cave paintings originate
from Europe, mostly France or Spain, though there are known instances of cave
paintings appearing elsewhere across the globe, including a site called
Creswell Crags in Nottinghamshire, England.
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