Information about the rock paintings of primitive people. How and with what people drew from primitive to the Middle Ages

Rock paintings of ancient people

The ancient civilizations were not too developed, regarding their knowledge in the field of chemistry and physics. Perhaps because of this, many mystical theories appeared, the deification of natural phenomena, great importance was attached to the death of a person, his departure to another world. The rock paintings of ancient people can tell us a lot about what happened in their lives. On the walls they depicted agricultural activities, military rituals, gods, priests. In a word, everything that their world consisted of and depended on.

IN Ancient Egypt tombs and pyramids are filled with rock paintings. In the tombs of the pharaohs, for example, it was customary to depict their entire life path from birth to death. In full detail, the cave paintings describe burial celebrations, etc.

Most primitive drawings they say that a person from his very appearance was drawn to art, he wanted to remember some moments of life forever. In hunting, primitive people saw a special beauty, they sought to portray the grace and strength of animals.

Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome also left a lot of rock evidence to remind us of their existence. The thing is that they already had developed writing - their drawings are much more interesting, from the point of view of studying everyday life, than ancient graffiti.

The Greeks loved to write down wise sayings, or cases that seemed to them instructive, funny. The Romans noted in rock paintings the valor of soldiers, the beauty of women, despite the fact that the Roman civilization was practically a copy of the Greek, Roman graffiti is not distinguished by the sharpness of thought or the dexterity of its transmission.

With the development of society, wall art also developed, passing from civilization to civilization, and giving it a unique shade. Each society, civilization leaves its mark in history, similar to the one that leaves an inscription on a clean wall.

The discovery of an ancient rock painting in a cave in Gibraltar, which scientists believe was made by Neanderthals about 39,000 years ago, has become a real sensation in scientific world. If the discovery turns out to be true, then history will have to be rewritten, because it turns out that the Neanderthals were not at all primitively stupid savages, as is commonly believed today. In our review, a dozen unique rock paintings that were found in different time and made a real sensation in the world of science.

1. Rock of the white shaman

This 4,000-year-old ancient rock art is located in the lower reaches of the Pecoe River in Texas. The giant image (3.5 m) shows the central figure surrounded by other people performing some rituals. It is assumed that the figure of a shaman is depicted in the center, and the picture itself depicts the cult of some forgotten ancient religion.

2. Kakadu Park

national park Kakadu is one of the most beautiful places for tourists in Australia. It is especially valued for its rich cultural heritage - the park has an impressive collection of local Aboriginal art. Some of the rock paintings at Kakadu (which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site) are nearly 20,000 years old.

3. Chauvet Cave

Another UNESCO World Heritage Site is located in the south of France. More than 1000 can be found in Chauvet Cave various images, most of them are animals and anthropomorphic figures. These are some of the oldest images known to man: their age dates back to 30,000 - 32,000 years. About 20,000 years ago, the cave was filled with stones and it has been preserved in excellent condition to this day.

4. Cueva de El Castillo

In Spain, the "Cave Cave" or Cueva de El Castillo was recently discovered, on the walls of which they found the oldest rock paintings in Europe, their age is 4,000 years older than all the rock paintings that were previously found in the Old World. Most images show handprints and simple geometric shapes, although there are also images of strange animals. One of the drawings, a simple red disk, was made 40,800 years ago. It is assumed that these paintings were made by Neanderthals.

5. Laas Gaal

Some of the most ancient and well-preserved rock paintings on the African continent can be found in Somalia, in the Laas Gaal (Camel Well) cave complex. Despite the fact that they are "only" 5,000 to 12,000 years old, these rock paintings are perfectly preserved. They depict mainly animals and people in ceremonial robes and various decorations. Unfortunately this wonderful cultural object cannot receive World Heritage status because it is located in an area where there is constant war.

6. Bhimbetka rock dwellings

The rock dwellings at Bhimbetka represent some of the earliest traces of human life on the Indian subcontinent. In natural rock shelters, there are paintings on the walls that are about 30,000 years old. These paintings represent the period of development of civilization from the Mesolithic to the end of prehistoric times. The drawings depict animals and people in daily activities such as hunting, religious ceremonies and, interestingly, dancing.

7. Magura

In Bolgari, the rock paintings found in the Magura cave are not very old - they are between 4,000 and 8,000 years old. They are interesting with the material that was used for drawing images - guano (litter) of a bat. In addition, the cave itself was formed millions of years ago and other archaeological artifacts have been found in it, such as the bones of extinct animals (for example, a cave bear).

8. Cueva de las Manos

The "Cave of Hands" in Argentina is famous for its extensive collection of prints and images of human hands. This rock painting dates back to 9,000 - 13,000 years. The cave itself (more precisely, the cave system) was used by ancient people as early as 1,500 years ago. Also in Cueva de las Manos you can find various geometric figures and images of hunting.

9. Altamira Cave

Paintings Found in Altamira Cave in Spain Considered a Masterpiece ancient culture. Stone painting era Upper Paleolithic(14,000 - 20,000 years old) is in exceptional condition. As in the Chauvet cave, a collapse sealed the entrance to this cave about 13,000 years ago, so the images remained in their original form. In fact, these drawings are so well preserved that when they were first discovered in the 19th century, scientists thought they were fake. It took a long time until technology made it possible to confirm the authenticity of the rock art. Since then, the cave has proved so popular with tourists that it had to be closed in the late 1970s as large amounts of carbon dioxide from the breath of visitors began to destroy the painting.

10. Lascaux Cave

This is by far the most famous and most significant collection rock art in the world. Some of the most beautiful 17,000 year old paintings in the world can be found in this cave system in France. They are very complex, very carefully made and at the same time perfectly preserved. Unfortunately, the cave was closed over 50 years ago due to the fact that under the influence of carbon dioxide exhaled by visitors, the unique images began to collapse. In 1983, a reproduction of a part of the cave called Lasko 2 was discovered.

Of great interest are and. They will be of interest not only to professional historians and art critics, but also to everyone who is interested in history.

rock painting- images in caves made by people of the Paleolithic era, one of the types of primitive art. Most of these objects were found in Europe, since it was there that ancient people were forced to live in caves and grottoes to escape the cold. But there are such caves in Asia, for example, Niah Caves in Malaysia.

Long years modern civilization had no idea about any objects ancient painting, however, in 1879, the Spanish amateur archaeologist Marcelino-Sans de Sautuola, along with his 9-year-old daughter, accidentally stumbled upon the Altamira cave, the vaults of which were decorated with many drawings of ancient people - an unparalleled find that shocked the researcher and inspired him for her close study. A year later, Sautuola, together with his friend Juan Vilanov y Pier from the University of Madrid, published their research results, which dated the execution of the drawings to the Paleolithic era. Many scientists took this message extremely ambiguously, Sautuola was accused of falsifying the finds, but later similar caves were discovered in many other parts of the world.

Rock art has been an object of great interest from the scientists of the world since its discovery in the 19th century. The first finds were made in Spain, but subsequently the rock paintings were discovered in different corners world, from Europe and Africa to Malaysia and Australia, as well as in North and South America.

Rock paintings are a source of valuable information for many scientific disciplines associated with the study of antiquity - from anthropology to zoology.

It is customary to distinguish between single-color, or monochrome, and multi-color, or polychrome images. Developing over time, by the XII millennium BC. e. cave painting began to be performed taking into account the volume, perspective, color and proportion of figures, took into account movement. Later cave painting became more stylized.

To create drawings, dyes of various origins were used: mineral (hematite, clay, manganese oxide), animal, vegetable ( charcoal). Dyes were mixed with binders, such as tree resin or animal fat, if necessary, and applied directly to the surface with the fingers; tools were also used, such as hollow tubes through which dyes were applied, as well as reeds and primitive brushes. Sometimes, to achieve greater clarity of contours, scraping or cutting out the contours of figures on the walls was used.

Since almost no sunlight penetrates into the caves in which most of the rock paintings are located, torches and primitive lamps were used to create the paintings for lighting.

Cave painting of the Paleolithic era consisted of lines and was dedicated mainly to animals. Over time, cave painting evolved as primitive communities developed; in the painting of the Mesolithic and Neolithic eras, there are both animals and handprints and images of people, their interactions with animals and with each other, as well as deities of primitive cults, their rites. A notable proportion of Neolithic drawings are images of ungulates, such as bison, deer, elk and horses, as well as mammoths; handprints also make up a large proportion. Animals were often depicted as wounded, with arrows sticking out of them. Later rock paintings also depict domesticated animals and other subjects contemporary to the authors. Known images of the ships of the sailors of ancient Phenicia, seen by the more primitive communities of the Iberian Peninsula.

Cave painting was widely practiced primitive societies who hunted and gathered and found shelter in caves or lived near them. The way of life of primitive people has changed little over the millennia, in connection with which both dyes and the plots of rock paintings remained practically unchanged and were common to populations of people who lived thousands of kilometers from each other.

However, there are differences between cave paintings of different time periods and regions. Thus, in the caves of Europe, animals are mainly depicted, while African rock paintings pay equal attention to both man and fauna. The technique of creating drawings also underwent certain changes; more late painting is often less rough and shows more high level cultural development.

Man has always gravitated towards art. Proof of this are the numerous rock paintings all over the planet, created by our ancestors tens of thousands of years ago. Primitive creativity is evidence that people lived everywhere - from the hot African savannah to the Arctic Circle. America, China, Russia, Europe, Australia - everywhere the ancient artists left their marks. One should not think that primitive painting is completely primitive. There are among the rock masterpieces and very skillful works, surprising with beauty and technique of execution, painted with bright colors and carrying a deep meaning.

Petroglyphs and rock art of ancient people

Cueva de las Manos Cave

The cave is located in the south of Argentina. For a long time, the ancestors of the Indians of Patagonia lived here. Drawings depicting a hunting scene for wild animals were found on the walls of the cave, as well as many negative images of the hands of teenage boys. Scientists have suggested that drawing the outline of the hand on the wall is part of the initiation rite. In 1999, the cave was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Serra da Capivara National Park

After the discovery of many monuments of rock art, the area, located in the Brazilian state of Piaui, was declared a national park. Back in the days of pre-Columbian America, the Serra da Capivara Park was a densely populated area, a large number of communities of the ancestors of modern Indians were concentrated here. Rock paintings created with coal, red hematite and white gypsum date back to 12-9 millennium BC. They belong to the Nordesti culture.

Lascaux cave

A monument of the late Paleolithic period, one of the best preserved in Europe. The cave is located in France in the valley of the river Weser. In the middle of the 20th century, drawings created 18-15 thousand years ago were discovered in it. They belong to the ancient Solutrean culture. Images are located in several cave halls. The most impressive 5 meter drawings of animals resembling bison are in the "Hall of the Bulls".

Kakadu National Park

The area is located in northern Australia, about 170 km from the city of Darwin. Over the past 40 thousand years, Aboriginal people have lived in the territory of the present national park. They left curious patterns primitive painting. These are images of hunting scenes, shamanic rites and scenes of the creation of the world, made in a special "X-ray" technique.

Nine Mile Canyon

The gorge in the USA in the east of Utah is almost 60 km long. It was even called the longest art gallery because of a series of rock petroglyphs. Some are created using natural dyes, others are carved directly into the rock. Most of the images were created by the Indians of the Fremont culture. In addition to drawings, cave dwellings, well houses and ancient grain storages are of interest.

Kapova cave

An archaeological monument located in Bashkortostan on the territory of the Shulgan-Tash reserve. The length of the cave is more than 3 km, the entrance is in the form of an arch 20 meters high and 40 meters wide. In the 1950s, primitive drawings from the Paleolithic era were discovered in four halls of the grotto - about 200 images of animals, anthropomorphic figures and abstract symbols. Most of them are created using red ocher.

Valley of Wonders

Mercantour National Park, which is called the "Valley of Wonders", is located near the Côte d'Azur. In addition to natural beauties, tourists are attracted by Mount Bego - a real archaeological monument, where tens of thousands of ancient paintings of the Bronze Age were discovered. These are geometric figures of incomprehensible purpose, religious symbols and other mysterious signs.

Cave of Altamira

The cave is located in northern Spain in the autonomous community of Cantabria. She became famous for her rock paintings, which are made in polychrome technique using many natural dyes: ocher, hematite, coal. The images refer to the Madeleine culture that existed 15-8 thousand years BC. Ancient artists were so skilled that they were able to give images of bison, horses and wild boars a three-dimensional appearance, using the natural unevenness of the wall.

Chauvet cave

Historical monument of France, located in the valley of the river Ardèche. About 40 thousand years ago, the cave was inhabited by ancient people who left behind more than 400 drawings. The oldest images are over 35,000 years old. The murals are perfectly preserved due to the fact that for a long time they could not reach Chauvet, it was discovered only in the 1990s. Unfortunately, tourists are not allowed to enter the cave.

Tadrart-Acacus

Once upon a time, on the territory of the hot and almost barren Sahara, there was a fertile and green area. There is a lot of evidence for this, including rock paintings found in Libya on the territory of the Tadrart-Acacus mountain range. From these images, one can study the evolution of the climate in this part of Africa, and trace the transformation of a flowering valley into a desert.

Wadi Methandush

Another masterpiece of rock art in Libya, located in the southwest of the country. The drawings of Wadi Methandush depict scenes with animals: elephants, cats, giraffes, crocodiles, bulls, antelopes. It is believed that the most ancient were created 12 thousand years ago. Most famous picture and an unofficial symbol of the area - two large cats that came together in a duel.

Laas Gaal

A cave complex in the unrecognized state of Somaliland with perfectly preserved ancient drawings. These murals are considered the most surviving among all on African continent, they date back to 9-3 millennia BC. Basically, they are dedicated sacred cow- a cult animal that was worshiped in these places. The images were discovered in the early 2000s by a French expedition.

Bhimbetka rock dwellings

Located in India, Madhya Pradesh. It is believed that erectus (Homo erectus - Homo erectus) also lived in the Bhimbetka cave complex, the immediate ancestors modern people. The drawings discovered by Indian archaeologists date back to the Mesolithic era. Interestingly, many of the rites of the inhabitants of the surrounding villages are similar to the scenes depicted by ancient people. In total, there are about 700 caves in Bhimbetka, of which more than 300 are well studied.

White Sea petroglyphs

Drawings of primitive people are located on the territory of the archaeological complex "Belomorskiye petroglyphs", which includes several dozen sites of ancient people. The images are located in a place called Zalavruga on the shores of the White Sea. In total, the collection consists of 2000 grouped illustrations depicting people, animals, battles, rituals, hunting scenes, there are also curious picture man on skis.

Petroglyphs of Tassilin-Adjer

A mountain plateau in Algiers, on the territory of which are located the largest drawings of ancient people discovered in northern Africa. Petroglyphs began to appear here from the 7th millennium BC. The main plot is hunting scenes and figures of animals of the African savannah. The illustrations are made in different techniques, which indicates their belonging to different historical eras.

Tsodilo

The Tsodilo mountain range is located in the Kalahari Desert in Botswana. Here, on an area of ​​more than 10 km², thousands of images created by ancient people were discovered. The researchers claim that they cover a time period of 100,000 years. The most ancient creations are primitive contour drawings, the later ones represent an attempt by artists to give the drawings a three-dimensional effect.

Tomsk pisanitsa

A natural museum-reserve in the Kemerovo region, created in the late 1980s with the aim of preserving rock art. About 300 images are located on its territory, many of them were created about 4 thousand years ago. The earliest dates back to the 10th century BC. In addition to the creativity of the ancient man, it will be interesting for tourists to look at ethnographic exhibition And museum collections, which are part of the Tomsk pisanitsy.

Magura Cave

The natural object is located in northwestern Bulgaria near the town of Belogradchik. During archaeological excavations in the 1920s, the first evidence of the stay of an ancient man was found here: tools, ceramics, jewelry. More than 700 examples of rock paintings were also found, presumably created 100-40 thousand years ago. In addition to figures of animals and people, they depict stars and the sun.

Gobustan reserve

The protected area includes mud volcanoes and ancient rock art. More than 6 thousand images were created by people who lived on this earth from the primitive era to the Middle Ages. The plots are quite simple - scenes of hunting, religious rites, figures of people and animals. Gobustan is located in Azerbaijan about 50 km from Baku.

Onega petroglyphs

Petroglyphs were discovered on the eastern shore of Lake Onega in the Pudozh region of Karelia. Drawings dating back to 4-3 millennium BC are placed on the rocks of several capes. Some of the illustrations are quite impressive 4 meters in size. In addition to the standard images of people and animals, there are mystical symbols of incomprehensible purpose, which always frightened the monks of the nearby Murom Holy Dormition Monastery.

Rock reliefs at Tanum

A group of petroglyphs discovered in the 1970s on the territory of the Swedish commune of Tanum. They are located along a 25-kilometer line, which in the Bronze Age, presumably, was the shore of the fjord. In total, archaeologists have discovered about 3 thousand drawings, collected in groups. Unfortunately, under the influence of adverse natural conditions petroglyphs are endangered. Gradually, it becomes more and more difficult to distinguish their outlines.

Rock paintings in Alta

Primitive people lived not only in a comfortable warm climate, but also near the Arctic Circle. In the 1970s, in the north of Norway, near the city of Alta, scientists discovered a large group of prehistoric drawings, consisting of 5,000 fragments. These paintings depict the life of a person in harsh weather conditions. Some illustrations contain ornaments and signs that scientists have not been able to decipher.

Coa Valley Archaeological Park

An archaeological complex created at the site of the discovery of prehistoric paintings dating back to the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods (the so-called Solutrean culture). There are not only ancient images here, some elements were created in the Middle Ages. The drawings are located on the rocks, stretching for 17 km along the Koa River. Also in the park there is the Museum of Art and Archeology, dedicated to history terrain.

Newspaper Rock

In translation, the name of the archaeological site means "newspaper stone". Indeed, the petroglyphs covering the rock resemble a characteristic typographical seal. The mountain is located in US state Utah. It has not been established for certain when these signs were created. It is believed that the Indians applied them to the cliff both before the European conquerors came to the continent, and after that.

Edakkal caves

Edakkal caves in the state of Kerala can be attributed to one of the archaeological treasures of India and all mankind. During the Neolithic period, prehistoric petroglyphs were painted on the walls of the grottoes. These characters have not yet been deciphered. The area is a popular tourist attraction, visiting the caves is possible only as part of an excursion. Self-entry is prohibited.

Petroglyphs of the archaeological landscape of Tamgaly

The Tamgaly tract is located about 170 km from Alma-Ata. In the 1950s, about 2 thousand rock paintings were discovered on its territory. Most of the images were created in the Bronze Age, there are also modern creations that appeared in the Middle Ages. Based on the nature of the drawings, scientists have suggested that an ancient sanctuary was located in Tamgaly.

Petroglyphs of the Mongolian Altai

The complex of rock signs, located on the territory of Northern Mongolia, covers an area of ​​25 km² and stretches for 40 km in length. The images were created in the Neolithic era more than 3 thousand years ago, there are also older drawings, 5 thousand years old. Most of them depict deer with chariots, there are also figures of hunters and fabulous animals resembling dragons.

Rock art in the Hua Mountains

Chinese rock art has been discovered in the south of the country in the Hua mountain range. They are figures of people, animals, ships, celestial bodies, weapons, painted in rich ocher. In total, there are about 2 thousand images, which are conventionally divided into 100 groups. Some pictures add up to full-fledged stories, where you can see a solemn ceremony, ritual or procession.

Swimmer's Cave

The grotto is located in the Libyan desert on the border of Egypt and Libya. In the 1990s, ancient petroglyphs were discovered there, the age of which exceeds 10 thousand years (the Neolithic era). They depict people floating in the sea or in another body of water. That is why the cave was named her modern name. After people began to visit the grotto en masse, many drawings began to deteriorate.

horseshoe canyon

The gorge is part of the Canyonlands National Park, which is located in the US state of Utah. Horseshoe Canyon became famous due to the discovery in the 1970s of ancient drawings created by nomadic hunter-gatherers. The images are printed on panels about 5 meters high and 60 meters wide, they are 2-meter humanoid figures.

Petroglyphs of Val Camonica

In the first half of the 20th century, the largest collection of rock carvings in the world - more than 300 thousand drawings. Most of them were created in the Iron Age, the latest ones belong to the Kamun culture, about which ancient Roman sources write. It is curious that when B. Mussolini was in power in Italy, these petroglyphs were considered proof of the birth of the highest Aryan race.

Twyfelfontein Valley

The most ancient settlements appeared in the Namibian Twyfelfontein valley more than 5 thousand years ago. Around the same time, rock paintings were created depicting the typical life of hunters and nomads. In total, scientists counted more than 2.5 thousand fragments, most of them are about 3 thousand years old, the youngest are about 500 years old. In the middle of the 20th century, someone stole an impressive part of the petroglyphs.

Chumashskaya painted cave

A national park in the state of California, on the territory of which there is a small sandstone grotto with a wall painting of the Chumash Indians. The plots of the paintings reflect the ideas of the natives about the world order. According to various estimates, the drawings were created in the period from 1 thousand to 200 years ago, which makes them quite modern compared to prehistoric rock art elsewhere in the world.

Petroglyphs of Toro Muerto

A group of petroglyphs in the Peruvian province of Castilla, which were created in the 6th-12th centuries during the Huari culture. Some scholars suggest that the Incas had a hand in them. The drawings depict animals, birds, celestial bodies, geometric ornaments, as well as people in the dance, probably performing some kind of ritual. In total, about 3 thousand painted stones of volcanic origin were discovered.

Petroglyphs of Easter Island

One of the most mysterious places on the planet, Easter Island, can surprise not only with giant stone heads. Ancient petroglyphs painted on rocks, boulders, cave walls are of no less interest and are considered an important archaeological heritage. Do they represent either schematic drawings technical process, or non-existent animals and plants - scientists have only to understand this issue.

About ancient rock paintings.

All over the world, speleologists in deep caves find confirmation of the existence of ancient people. Rock paintings have been excellently preserved for many millennia. There are several types of masterpieces - pictograms, petroglyphs, geoglyphs. Important monuments of human history are regularly included in the World Heritage Register.

Usually on the walls of the caves there are common plots, such as hunting, battle, images of the sun, animals, human hands. People in ancient times attached sacred significance to the paintings, they believed that they were helping themselves in the future.

Images were applied by various methods and materials. For artistic creativity animal blood, ocher, chalk, and even bat guano were used. special kind murals - hewn murals, they were beaten out in stone with the help of a special cutter.

Many caves are not well studied and are limited in visiting, while others, on the contrary, are open to tourists. However, most of the precious cultural heritage disappears unattended, not finding its researchers.

Below is a short excursion into the world of the most interesting caves with prehistoric rock paintings.

Ancient rock paintings.

Bulgaria is famous not only for the hospitality of the inhabitants and the indescribable color of the resorts, but also for the caves. One of them, with the sonorous name of Magura, is located north of Sofia, not far from the town of Belogradchik. Total length more than two kilometers of cave galleries. The halls of the cave have colossal dimensions, each of them is about 50 meters wide and 20 meters high. The pearl of the cave is a rock painting made directly on the surface covered with bat guano. The paintings are multi-layered, here are a number of paintings from the Paleolithic, Neolithic, Eneolithic and Bronze Ages. The drawings of ancient Homo sapiens depict figures of dancing villagers, hunters, many outlandish animals, constellations. The sun, plants, tools are also represented. Here begins the story of the festivities of the ancient era and the solar calendar, scientists assure.

The cave with the poetic name of Cueva de las Manos (Spanish for “Cave of Many Hands”) is located in the province of Santa Cruz, exactly one hundred miles from the nearest locality- city of Perito Moreno. The art of the rock painting in the hall, 24 meters long and 10 meters high, dates back to 13-9 millennium BC. amazing picture on limestone is a three-dimensional canvas, decorated with traces of hands. Scientists have built a theory about how the surprisingly crisp and clear handprints turned out. Prehistoric people took a special composition, then they put it in their mouths, and through a tube they blew it with force onto a hand attached to the wall. In addition, there are stylized images of a man, rhea, guanaco, cats, geometric shapes with ornaments, the process of hunting and observing the sun.

Enchanting India offers tourists not only the delights of oriental palaces and charming dances. In north central India, there are huge mountain formations of weathered sandstone with many caves. Once upon a time, ancient people lived in natural shelters. About 500 dwellings with traces of human habitation have been preserved in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The Indians called the rock dwellings the name of Bhimbetka (on behalf of the hero of the Mahabharata epic). The art of the ancients here dates back to the Mesolithic era. Some of the paintings are minor, and some of the hundreds of images are very typical and vivid. 15 rock masterpieces are available for contemplation of those who wish. Mostly, patterned ornaments and battle scenes are depicted here.

Rare animals and venerable scientists find shelter in the Serra da Capivara National Park. And 50 thousand years ago here, in the caves, our distant ancestors found shelter. Presumably, this is the oldest community of hominids in South America. The park is located near the town of San Raimondo Nonato, in the central part of the state of Piauí. Experts have counted more than 300 archaeological sites. The main surviving images date back to 25-22 millennium BC. The most amazing thing is that extinct bears and other paleofauna are painted on the rocks.

The Republic of Somaliland recently seceded from Somalia in Africa. Archaeologists in the area are interested in the Laas-Gaal cave complex. Here are rock paintings from the 8th-9th and 3rd millennium BC. On the granite walls of the majestic natural shelters, scenes of the life and life of the nomadic people of Africa are depicted: the process of grazing, ceremonies, and playing with dogs. The local population does not attach any importance to the drawings of their ancestors, and uses the caves, as in the old days, for shelter during the rain. Many of the studies have not been studied properly. In particular, there are problems with the chronological reference of the masterpieces of the Arab-Ethiopian ancient rock paintings.

Not far from Somalia, in Libya, there are also rock paintings. They are much earlier, and date back almost to the 12th millennium BC. The last of them were applied after the birth of Christ, in the first century. It is interesting to observe, following the drawings, how the fauna and flora changed in this area of ​​the Sahara. First we see elephants, rhinoceros and fauna characteristic of a rather humid climate. Also of interest is the clearly traced change in the lifestyles of the population - from hunting to settled cattle breeding, then to nomadism. To get to Tadrart Acacus, one has to cross the desert to the east of the city of Ghats.

In 1994, on a walk, by chance, Jean-Marie Chauvet discovered the cave that later became famous. She was named after the caver. In the Chauvet cave, in addition to traces of the life of ancient people, hundreds of wonderful frescoes were discovered. The most amazing and beautiful of them depict mammoths. In 1995, the cave became a state monument, and in 1997, 24-hour surveillance was introduced here to prevent damage to the magnificent heritage. Today, in order to take a look at the incomparable rock art of the Cro-Magnons, you need to get a special permit. In addition to mammoths, there is something to admire, here on the walls there are handprints and fingers of representatives of the Aurignacian culture (34-32 thousand years BC)

In fact, the name of the Australian national park has nothing to do with the famous Cockatoo parrots. It's just that the Europeans mispronounced the name of the Gaagudju tribe. This nation is now extinct, and there is no one to correct the ignorant. The park is inhabited by natives who have not changed their way of life since the Stone Age. For thousands of years, Indigenous Australians have been involved in rock art. Pictures were painted here already 40 thousand years ago. In addition to religious scenes and hunting, stylized stories in drawings about useful skills (educational) and magic (entertainment) are sketched here. Of the animals, extinct marsupial tigers, catfish, barramundi are depicted. All the wonders of the Arnhem Land plateau, Colpignac and the southern hills are located 171 km from the city of Darwin.

It turns out that the first Homo sapiens reached Spain in the 35th millennium BC, it was the early Paleolithic. They left outlandish rock paintings in the Altamira cave. The art artifacts on the walls of the huge cave date back to both the 18th and 13th millennia. IN last period polychrome figures, a peculiar combination of engraving and painting, the acquisition of realistic details are interesting. The famous bison, deer and horses, or rather, their beautiful images on the walls of Altamira, often end up in textbooks for middle school students. The cave of Altamira is located in the Cantabrian region.

Lascaux is not just a cave, but a whole complex of small and large cave halls located in the south of France. Not far from the caves is the legendary village of Montignac. The paintings on the walls of the cave were drawn 17 thousand years ago. And they still amaze amazing shapes, akin contemporary art graffiti. Scholars especially value the Hall of the Bulls and the Palace Hall of the Cats. What prehistoric creators left there is easy to guess. In 1998, the rock masterpieces were almost destroyed by mold, which arose due to an improperly installed air conditioning system. And in 2008, Lasko was closed to save more than 2,000 unique drawings.

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