Roughly two-thirds of those cave sign types were already in use around 40,000 years ago — the system appears in Europe fully mature, with no experimental phase. Von Petzinger suggests modern humans may have carried this symbolic tradition with them, pushing its origins toward Africa and much deeper into the past.
Two-thirds of cave sign types already in use 40,000 years ago, suggesting non-European origins
Key facts
- When von Petzinger sorted the signs by age, approximately two-thirds of the sign types were already in use in the earliest period of European cave art, around 40,000 years ago
- The sign system arrives in Europe already appearing mature, with no slow build-up or experimental phase
- Von Petzinger proposed the signs may never have been invented in Europe; modern humans may have carried a symbolic tradition with them when migrating into Europe
- This would push the origins of the symbolic tradition back along migration routes toward Africa and deeper into the past than any cave wall can show
Sources
bradshawfoundation.com
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nationalgeographic.com
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nationalgeographic.com
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ted.com
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ucl.ac.uk
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32 Symbols in Ice Age Cavesforum.artofmemory.com
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Genevieve von Petzinger studies the geometric signs found in early European Ice Age rock art sites. Genevieve von Petzinger's resource list ...
The First Signs | Book by Genevieve von Petzingersimonandschuster.com
archeologist von Petzinger explores the little-known geometric cave art of our ancient ancestors—perhaps the first form of human written communication
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