According to a study published June 21, 2023 in the open access journal PLOS ONE Marks on a cave wall in France are the earliest known engravings by Neanderthals, by Jean-Claude Marquet of the University of Tours in France and colleagues. Research in recent years has revealed a lot about the cultural complexity of Neanderthals.

However, relatively little is known about their symbolic or artistic expression. Only a short list of symbolic artifacts attributed to Neanderthals and their interpretations are often discussed. In this study, Marche and colleagues determined that the markings on a cave wall in France are the earliest known Neanderthal engravings.

This is the La Roche Cotaire cave in the heart of the Val de Loire in France; here a series of non-figurative index finger grooves on the wall are interpreted as human-made signs. The researchers analyzed the graphics and used photogrammetry to create 3D models of these signs and compared them to known and experimental human signs. Based on the shape, spacing and placement of these engravings, the team concluded that they are conscious, organized and purposeful forms created by human hands.

The team also dated the cave sediments using optically stimulated luminescence dating and determined that the cave was closed due to sediment fill about 57,000 years ago, long before Homo sapiens settled in the area. This, combined with the fact that the stone tools in the cave are Mousterian, a technology associated only with Neanderthals, is strong evidence that these carvings were the work of Neanderthals.

As these are non-figurative symbols, the intent behind them is unclear. But they are about the same age as cave engravings by Homo sapiens elsewhere in the world. This adds to the growing evidence that Neanderthal behavior and activities were as complex and diverse as our ancestors.

The authors add: “Fifteen years after re-excavation at the La Roche-Cotarre site, the engravings are more than 57,000 years old, and according to stratigraphy probably date to around 75,000 years ago, making it the oldest decorated cave in France.” . Source