Rediscovering the Roots of Creativity: 51,200-Year-Old Rock Painting on Sulawesi Challenges Human Evolution Beliefs

An ancient rock painting found in Indonesia, estimated to be 51,200 years old, is the oldest evidence of people knowing how to illustrate stories in ancient times. This painting depicts a wild boar and three human figures, showing that people had the ability to think abstractly and illustrate stories at that time. This discovery could change our understanding of human evolution.

Researchers led by Professor Maxime Aubert from Griffith University, Australia and Australian-Indonesian team discovered this painting on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The painting is older than any previously discovered cave art, making it more than 5,000 years older than the previous oldest one. This find shows that modern humans had the ability for creative thinking long ago.

The pig and three human-like figures in the painting were determined to be 51,200 years old through new dating methods involving laser-cut samples. This method may lead to reevaluation of other rock paintings and could reveal even older examples of early human creativity.

This discovery challenges previous beliefs that art originated in Europe, suggesting that ancient cave art may have been present in Africa as well. It opens up possibilities for further exploration of early human artistic expression and storytelling across different continents. As research continues, more surprises and discoveries are expected in the field of ancient art history.