According to a study published on June 21, 2023, in the open-access journal PLOS ONE, the oldest known engravings made by Neanderthals were found on a cave wall in France. The study was conducted by Jean-Claude Marquet and colleagues from the University of Tours, France.

Neanderthal art is a rare find

Research in recent decades has revealed a lot about the cultural complexity of Neanderthals. However, their symbolic or artistic expression remains relatively unknown. There are only a few known symbolic productions attributed to Neanderthals, and their interpretation is often the subject of debate. In this study, Marquet and colleagues identified markings on a cave wall in France as the oldest known Neanderthal engravings.

France’s La Roche-Cotard cave drawings

The cave in question is La Roche-Cotard in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France. The markings on the wall are a series of non-figurative markings, interpreted as finger-flutings, marks made by human hands. The researchers made a plotting analysis and used photogrammetry to create 3D models of these markings, comparing them with known and experimental human markings. Based on the shape, spacing, and arrangement of these engravings, the team concluded that they are deliberate, organized, and intentional shapes created by human hands.

The team used optically-stimulated luminescence dating to determine that cave sediments indicate the cave was closed off by infilling sediment around 57,000 years ago, well before Homo sapiens established in the region. The stone tools within the cave are only Mousterian, a technology associated with Neanderthals, which gives strong evidence that these engravings were made by Neanderthals.

These engravings are non-figurative symbols, and the intent behind them is unclear. However, they were made around the same time as cave engravings made by Homo sapiens in other parts of the world, which supports evidence that the behavior and activities of Neanderthals were similarly complex and diverse as those of our own ancestors.

The authors add:

“Fifteen years after the resumption of excavations at the La Roche-Cotard site, the engravings have been dated to over 57,000 years ago and, thanks to stratigraphy, probably to around 75,000 years ago, making this the oldest decorated cave in France, if not Europe!”

France’s La Roche-Cotard cave drawings

Check out the La Roche-Cotard cave drawings in the picture gallery below.

The survey (O. Spaey and G. Alain) gives the traces numbering. The arrows indicate the direction of the passage of the finger.
The survey (O. Spaey and G. Alain) gives the numbering of the traces. The arrows indicate the direction of the traces. The alteration of the central lower part is very strong and worrying. S11 Fig shows the Undulated Panel and the Circular Panel together.
The survey (O. Spaey and G. Alain) gives the numbering of the traces. Animal marks are in blue. Traces 13 to 15 and 27 to 35 are modern anthropic traces made with metal tool.
The limits of the finger flutings are shown in black. When the edges are well cut, the line is thicker. When the line is not clearly legible, the line is dashed. Animal tracks are in blue. This legend also applies to all other panels. The survey (J. Esquerre and H. Lombard) gives the numbering of the traces.

Image Credits

In-Article Image Credits

France's La Roche-Cotard cave drawings via Plos One with usage type - Editorial use (Fair Use)
France's La Roche-Cotard cave drawings - circular panel via Ploe One with usage type - Editorial use (Fair Use)
France's La Roche-Cotard cave drawings - the triangular panel via Plos One with usage type - Editorial use (Fair Use)
France's La Roche-Cotard cave drawings - dotted panel via Plos One with usage type - Editorial use (Fair Use)
France's La Roche-Cotard cave drawings - the linear panel via Plos One with usage type - Editorial use (Fair Use)