3 October 2023 The Future is the Product of the Past

Philippines Cagayan Cave Art 3500 Years Old

A depiction depicting a human-like figure on a cave wall in Penablanca town, Cagayan province, is Southeast Asia’s first directly dated rock art.

It was learned that the pigment samples taken from the cave drawing were approximately 3,500 years old using the radiocarbon dating method.

The results of the research were published in the Radiocarbon journal under the title “First Directly Dated Rock Art in Southeast Asia and The Archaeological Implications”.

Dr. Andrea Jalandoni, lead author of the paper entitled “First Directly Dated Rock Art in Southeast Asia and The Archaeological Implications,” said samples of pigment from the cave drawing have been dated to be around 3,500 years old using the radiocarbon dating method.

“This date is older than anyone expected, and it marks the beginning of the direct rock art dating revolution in Southeast Asia. Hopefully, this will lead to better appreciation and more protection for this significant cultural heritage in the Philippines,” Dr. Jalandoni said at Monday’s virtual media conference.

She said that direct dating rock art entails dating the paint material from the artwork itself rather than dating the materials around or on top of the artwork.

calloa cave
The age supports prior research findings on other early human occupation activities in Peablanca, such as archaeological evidence of foraging in Eme and Arku Caves and pottery in Callao Cave, all inside the same limestone formation, according to the research team. Callao cave

Jalandoni, an Associate at the National Museum of the Philippines Research and Research Fellow at Griffith University in Australia, also stated that the directly dated rock art whose dated samples were taken from a black pigment human figure was discovered in Hermoso Tuliao cave in Peablanca, a region where the Philippines’ oldest human remains were discovered.

“The black pigment human figure forms part of a gallery of paintings with two other human figures, and a few leaf and circle motifs. Similar motifs have been found in other places in Southeast Asia,” she added.

Noel Hidalgo Tan, Senior Specialist in Archaeology at the Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts in Bangkok, stated that they previously considered black rock art was more contemporary because black art was placed atop red art or because the things depicted were relatively modern.

“This new finding forces us to be more cautious about attributing black rock art as ‘recent’ and also encourages us to embark on direct dating for more rock art sites in the region,” Tan said.

During the virtual media conference, it was also revealed that the data acquired by Jalandoni’s study team indicates that the rock art is either early Austronesian or Agta, the local Negritos.

Jalandoni further mentioned that Negritos are thought to have come earlier, before the end of the Pleistocene, a geological period that lasted up to 10,000 years ago, via land bridges in the south or brief inter-island sea crossings.

“There is a need for more research to be done to determine which among these two groups specifically made the drawings,” she said.

The age supports prior research findings on other early human occupation activities in Peablanca, such as archaeological evidence of foraging in Eme and Arku Caves and pottery in Callao Cave, all inside the same limestone formation, according to the research team.

The study stated that Peablanca has been a hotbed for notable archaeological findings since the early 2000s, with fossils of the newly identified early human species Homo luzonensis unearthed in Callao Cave 67,000 years ago.

“The rock art in some of the caves in Peñablanca provides us with a glimpse into the lives of the people who occupied the area long before the beginning of the Spanish colonization of the Philippines 500 years ago. From archaeological evidence and research, we now know these people obtained food by foraging, were using pottery and were creating rock art on cave walls,” the research team added.

Cover Photo: Anthropomorph from Hermoso Tuliao cave in the Philippines. Photo by Mark D. Willis.

Banner
Related Post

Archaeologists discover ‘exceptional’ ancient Roman sanctuary in near intact condition in Netherlands

23 June 2022

23 June 2022

Archaeologists have unearthed a relatively intact 1st-century Roman sanctuary in the town of Herwen-Hemeling in the province of Gelderland in...

The Secret of the Shipwrecks at Theodosius Harbor: 1,600 Years Old Women’s Sandals and Comb

11 April 2023

11 April 2023

The 1,600-year-old sandals and comb unearthed during the excavations of Theodosius Harbor (Portus Theodosiacus), the second-biggest harbor built on the...

Interesting Social Dimensions of Rare Diseases Seen in the Bronze Age

10 March 2021

10 March 2021

When it comes to Rare Diseases, what almost all of us think of is that this disease has affected very...

483 Celtic gold coins worth several million euros stolen from German museum

23 November 2022

23 November 2022

A huge horde of ancient gold coins dating back to 100 BC was stolen from the Celtic and Roman Museum...

Habib-i Neccar Mosque, one of the first mosques in Anatolia, was destroyed in the earthquake

12 February 2023

12 February 2023

Antakya Habib-i Neccar Mosque, one of the first mosques built in Anatolia, was destroyed in the earthquake that killed tens...

Roman gilded silver fragment uncovered in Norfolk baffles researchers

27 March 2023

27 March 2023

In Norfolk, a metal detector uncovered an ancient Roman fragment made of gilded silver. The piece was clearly a part...

The 6,000-year-old settlement found in island of Corsica

2 May 2023

2 May 2023

Archaeologists in a French municipality recently excavated the slopes of Punta Campana (island of Corsica) in preparation for a construction...

Anatolia’s largest olive oil factory unearthed

14 January 2022

14 January 2022

A Roman-era olive oil factory has been unearthed during excavations in the İskenderun district of Hatay. It has been reported...

A 1,600-year-old church has been discovered in Turkey’s ancient city of Priene

19 October 2021

19 October 2021

A 1,600-year-old historical church was unearthed during the excavations in the Ancient City of Priene, located in the western province...

4,000-year-old cylinder seal found in Blaundos excavations

29 September 2022

29 September 2022

A 4,000-year-old cylinder seal was found during the excavations of the ancient city of Blaundus (or Blaundos, as it is...

3,000-year-old weavings discovered in Alaska’s Alutiiq settlement

3 September 2023

3 September 2023

Archaeologists have uncovered fragments of woven grass artifacts estimated to be 3,000 years old during excavations at an ancestral sod...

Archaeologists discover 1200-year-old Wari temple complex in Peru

24 February 2023

24 February 2023

Archaeologists from the University of Illinois Chicago have uncovered a temple complex constructed by the Wari Empire 1,200 years ago...

Archaeologists say 12,000-year-old flutes discovered in northern Israel may have been used to lure falcons

9 June 2023

9 June 2023

New research reveals that about 12,000 years ago, in northern Israel, humans turned the bones of small birds into instruments...

An Interesting Ottoman Tradition Resembling Christmas tree: “NAHIL” OR WISHING TREE

28 December 2022

28 December 2022

Nahıl, a word of Arabic origin, means date palm. This word was later used by the people to mean the...

Archaeologists discovered on Tunisian coast three shipwrecks, one of which 2,000 years old

8 June 2023

8 June 2023

A team of archaeologists from eight countries—Algeria, Croatia, Egypt, France, Italy, Morocco, Spain, and Tunisia bordering the Mediterranean Sea has...

Comments
Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *