This find gives us the right to believe that our ancestors in Europe and Asia started drawing animals and other figures on the walls of the prehistoric caves almost at the same time with both European ice age artists and their Asian counterparts playing similarly important role in developing this highly innovative occupation in the human history.
Since 1990s, there were reports heard on accasional findings of rock paintings in the remote limestone caves of East Kalimantan, but it was not until recently that the scaled research was undertaken. Kilometres of walls in the caves which could be reached only via a strenious trek through thick jungle forests, were found covered with paintings though it was hard to date them. Finally it was confirmed that the most recent samples were created some 37,2000 year ago while there are also those which could have been made about 51,800 years ago.
It is not yet known whether the access to the caves with ice age rock paintings inside will be allowed to public and if yes, then when. But we are securing ourselves a ticket to Kalimantan and the seats in the first row!
World's Oldest Cave Paintings Are Discovered in Indonesia
News in Asia
The world’s oldest known figurative art pieces have been found in a Borneo cave, Indonesia, by Australian and Indonesian scientists. The cave paintings date back some 40,000 years thus stealing the title from the previously oldest cave paintings in France and Spain.