Lubang Jeriji Saléh

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Lubang Jeriji Saleh cave
Lubang Jeriji Saleh
Lubang Jeriji Saleh cave painting of Bull.jpg
One of the oldest known figurative paintings in the world, a depiction of a bull, has been dated to be 40,000 years old. [1] [2]
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Location in Indonesia
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Lubang Jeriji Saléh (Indonesia)
Location Sangkulirang-Mangkalihat Karst, Bengalon, East Kutai
Region East Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo
Coordinates 1°14′29.3″N117°19′44.8″E / 1.241472°N 117.329111°E / 1.241472; 117.329111
History
Material Limestone karst
Periods Paleolithic

Lubang Jeriji Saleh is a limestone cave complex in Indonesia in the Sangkulirang-Mangkalihat Karst, located in the remote jungle of Bengalon district in East Kutai, East Kalimantan province on Borneo island. In a 2018 publication, a team of researchers announced to have found the then-oldest known work of figurative art on the world among the cave paintings, at 40,000 years old. [3] However, the same team has since found and dated an elaborate therianthrope rock art panel in the Leang Bulu' Sipong 4 cave in Sulawesi's Maros-Pangkep karst to around 44,000 years ago. [4] [5]

Contents

Cave paintings

The Lubang Jeriji Saleh site is one among many caves, embedded in the steep mountains of East Kalimantan. Its walls and ceiling covered with hundreds of outlines of hands and outstretched fingers inside bursts of red-orange ochre or iron oxide paint and figurative cave paintings. An updated analysis of the cave walls suggests, that the oldest of the finger stencils are 52,000 years old and the earliest actual painting, a depiction of a banteng bull, was created around 40,000 years ago, tens of thousands of years earlier than previous datings. [1] [2] [6] [7] The bull, that belongs to a trio of rotund bovine creatures is over 5 ft (1.5 m) across, [8] and also made from reddish-orange ochre on the cave's limestone walls. [9]

Based on 2018 Uranium datings of small samples of the limestone crust, three phases of decoration were identified. The oldest contains the bull depiction and red-orange ochre hand stencils. During the second phase stencils in a mulberry colour along with intricate motifs and humans were created. Human figures, boats and geometric designs were identified as the work of the third and youngest phase. [10]

Investigation

The Kalimantan caves were explored in 1994 and the paintings first spotted by French caver Luc-Henri Fage. [11] [12] Lubang Jeriji Saleh (first called Ilas Kenceng in the Kalimanthrope publications) was discovered by Pindi Setiawan, Luc-Henri Fage and Jean-Michel Chazine in September 1998, guided by Pak Saleh, a Dayak swallow nest hunter. [13] The surveys and the study of the paintings were carried out during three following missions. This vast fossil cavity located 300 m above a small river, develops parallel to the cliff and communicates on the outside by three successive porches under a summit called Ilas Kenceng

Helicopter view of Marang Mountains (Kalimantan, Indonesia) with the three aligned porches of the Lobang Jerihi Saleh fossil cave (ex-Ilas Kenceng) LHFage L Saleh entrances from heli-2003.jpg
Helicopter view of Marang Mountains (Kalimantan, Indonesia) with the three aligned porches of the Lobang Jerihi Saleh fossil cave (ex-Ilas Kenceng)

The paintings, very varied, are located in ten particular zones. In addition to the ceiling with bovids, the most remarkable element is a "Bouquet of hands"

The "Bouquet of Hands", a remarkable manifestation of Borneo rock art, features six hands in an eternal graphic round. Note the older orange-red hands covered by the motif. LHFage Bouquet de Mains, Gua Jeriji Saleh, Kalimantan, Indonesie..jpg
The "Bouquet of Hands", a remarkable manifestation of Borneo rock art, features six hands in an eternal graphic round. Note the older orange-red hands covered by the motif.

Luc-Henri Fage's 2003 inventory counts 328 negative hands, 43 representations; mainly anthropomorphs, mammals, and zoomorphs, completed by a few signs (stick, barbed wire signs, etc.). A dating published in 2003 on a calcite formation covering 2 hand-prints had concluded to an age of 9900 years (U/Th combined with C14), which was the first proof of the belonging of this Borneo rock expression to the Pleistocene. [14]

The 2018 team of researchers and scientists, led by Maxime Aubert from the Griffith University, Australia and Pindi Setiawan from the Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia had investigated the site, identified and dated the rock paintings as the world's oldest known figurative art and published the results in the Nature journal by the end of the year. [15] [16] [17] The team has since found and dated an elaborate therianthrope rock art panel in the Leang Bulu’ Sipong 4 cave in Sulawesi, to around 44,000 years old, according to a 2019 publication. [4] [5] In order to date the paint pigments, the team applied Uranium series dating techniques on the calcium carbonate (limestone) particles which encrust the depictions. [2]

Importance

The discovery of the cave paintings is important within human cultural history, as it adds to the view that cave art was created simultaneously in Southeast Asia and Europe. However, it is unknown which people created the paintings and what happened to them. [18]

Francesco d'Errico, an expert in prehistoric art at the University of Bordeaux, described the investigation as a "major archaeological discovery", but also suggested that the discovery offered little information on the geographical origins of art. [19]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borneo</span> Island in Southeast Asia

Borneo is the third-largest island in the world, with an area of 748,168 km2 (288,869 sq mi). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda Islands, located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and east of Sumatra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of painting</span> Historical development of painting

The history of painting reaches back in time to artifacts and artwork created by pre-historic artists, and spans all cultures. It represents a continuous, though periodically disrupted, tradition from Antiquity. Across cultures, continents, and millennia, the history of painting consists of an ongoing river of creativity that continues into the 21st century. Until the early 20th century it relied primarily on representational, religious and classical motifs, after which time more purely abstract and conceptual approaches gained favor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulawesi</span> One of the Greater Sunda Islands of Indonesia

Sulawesi, also known as Celebes, is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's 11th-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago. Within Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra are more populous.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cave painting</span> Paintings, often prehistoric, on cave walls and ceilings

In archaeology, cave paintings are a type of parietal art, found on the wall or ceilings of caves. The term usually implies prehistoric origin. These paintings were often created by Homo sapiens, but also Denisovans and Neanderthals; other species in the same Homo genus. Discussion around prehistoric art is important in understanding the history of the Homo sapiens species and how Homo sapiens have come to have unique abstract thoughts. Some point to these prehistoric paintings as possible examples of creativity, spirituality, and sentimental thinking in prehistoric humans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prehistoric art</span> Art produced in preliterate cultures

In the history of art, prehistoric art is all art produced in preliterate, prehistorical cultures beginning somewhere in very late geological history, and generally continuing until that culture either develops writing or other methods of record-keeping, or makes significant contact with another culture that has, and that makes some record of major historical events. At this point ancient art begins, for the older literate cultures. The end-date for what is covered by the term thus varies greatly between different parts of the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Kalimantan</span> Province of Indonesia

East Kalimantan is a province of Indonesia. Its territory comprises the eastern portion of Borneo/Kalimantan. It had a population of about 3.03 million at the 2010 census, 3.42 million at the 2015 census, and 3.766 million at the 2020 census; the official estimate as at mid 2023 was 4,030,488. Its capital is the city of Samarinda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aurignacian</span> Upper Paleolithic culture of Europe

The Aurignacian is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with Early European modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the Levant, where the Emiran period and the Ahmarian period form the first periods of the Upper Paleolithic, corresponding to the first stages of the expansion of Homo sapiens out of Africa. They then migrated to Europe and created the first European culture of modern humans, the Aurignacian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Culture of Indonesia</span>

The culture of Indonesia has been shaped by the interplay of indigenous customs and diverse foreign influences. With over 1,300 distinct ethnic groups, including significant Austronesian and Melanesian cultures, contributing to its rich traditions, languages, and customs, Indonesia is a melting pot of diversity. Positioned along ancient trade routes between the Far East, South Asia, and the Middle East, the country has absorbed cultural practices influenced by Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Islam, and Christianity. These influences have created a complex cultural tapestry that often differs from the original indigenous cultures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Figurative art</span> Art that depicts real object sources

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Kutai Regency</span> Regency in East Kalimantan, Indonesia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art of the Middle Paleolithic</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Art of the Upper Paleolithic</span> Oldest form of prehistoric art

The art of the Upper Paleolithic represents the oldest form of prehistoric art. Figurative art is present in Europe and Southeast Asia, beginning around 50,000 years ago. Non-figurative cave paintings, consisting of hand stencils and simple geometric shapes, are somewhat older, at least 40,000 years old, and possibly as old as 64,000 years. This latter estimate is due to a controversial 2018 study based on uranium-thorium dating, which would imply Neanderthal authorship and qualify as art of the Middle Paleolithic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prehistoric Indonesia</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caves in the Maros-Pangkep karst</span> Cave and archaeological site in Indonesia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indonesian art</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indonesian painting</span>

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Cape Mangkalihat, also known as Cape Sangkulirang, is a cape in eastern Borneo. It is located in the Indonesian province of East Kalimantan, in the regencies of Berau and East Kutai.

References

  1. 1 2 Zimmer, Carl (7 November 2018). "In Cave in Borneo Jungle, Scientists Find Oldest Figurative Painting in the World – A cave drawing in Borneo is at least 40,000 years old, raising intriguing questions about creativity in ancient societies". The New York Times . Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Aubert, M.; et al. (7 November 2018). "Palaeolithic cave art in Borneo". Nature . 564 (7735): 254–257. Bibcode:2018Natur.564..254A. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0679-9. PMID   30405242. S2CID   53208538 . Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  3. ↑ Aubert, M.; Setiawan, P.; Oktaviana, A. A.; Brumm, A.; Sulistyarto, P. H.; Saptomo, E. W.; Istiawan, B.; Ma’rifat, T. A.; Wahyuono, V. N.; Atmoko, F. T.; Zhao, J.-X.; Huntley, J.; Taçon, P. S. C.; Howard, D. L.; Brand, H. E. A. (7 November 2018). "Palaeolithic cave art in Borneo". Nature. 564 (7735). Springer Nature America, Inc: 254–257. Bibcode:2018Natur.564..254A. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0679-9. ISSN   0028-0836. PMID   30405242. S2CID   53208538.
  4. 1 2 Maxime Aubert; et al. (11 December 2019). "Earliest hunting scene in prehistoric art". Nature. 576 (7787): 442–445. doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1806-y. PMID   31827284. S2CID   209311825.
  5. 1 2 Alison George (14 December 2019). "44,000-year-old hunting scene is earliest painted 'story' ever found". New Scientist.
  6. ↑ Hardwerk, Brian (7 November 2018). "World's Oldest-Known Figurative Paintings Discovered in Borneo Cave – Dated to at least 40,000 years old, the depiction of a cattle-like animal has striking similarities to ancient rock art found in other parts of the world". Smithsonian . Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  7. ↑ "Oldest cave painting of animal found". BBC News. 7 November 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  8. ↑ Larson, Christina (7 November 2018). "Red bull drawn in Indonesian cave dated to 40,000 years ago". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  9. ↑ Sample, Ian (7 November 2018). "World's 'oldest figurative painting' discovered in Borneo cave". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  10. ↑ Strickland, Ashley (7 November 2018). "Oldest figurative artwork found in a cave that's full of surprises". CNN. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  11. ↑ Luc-Henri Fage (January 2009). "Borneo, Memory of the Caves". Academia. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  12. ↑ Delbecq, Denis (7 November 2018). "A Bornéo, des fresques parmi les plus anciennes du monde ont été découvertes". Le Temps (in French). Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  13. ↑ Luc-Henri Fage (January 2009). "Borneo, Memory of the Caves". Academia. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  14. ↑ Valérie Plagne (2003). "Cross dating (ThIU_14C) of calcite covering prehistoric paintings in Borneo". Quaternary Research. 60 (2): 172–179. doi:10.1016/S0033-5894(03)00064-4.
  15. ↑ Maxime Aubert; et al. (November 2018). "Palaeolithic cave art in Borneo". Nature. 564 (7735): 254–257. Bibcode:2018Natur.564..254A. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0679-9. PMID   30405242. S2CID   53208538.
  16. ↑ Gabbatiss, Josh (8 November 2018). "Oldest ever figurative painting discovered in Borneo cave". The Independent. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  17. ↑ Weule, Genelle (8 November 2018). "Scientists say this is the world's oldest known animal rock art". ABC News. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  18. ↑ Rice, Doyle (8 November 2018). "Earliest cave paintings of animal discovered in Indonesia, dating back 40,000 years". USA TODAY. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  19. ↑ Rincon, Paul (7 November 2018). "'Oldest animal painting' discovered". BBC News. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
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