- Anthropologist hired by tourism bureau
- Create a promotional pamphlet for a paleo-archaeology site featuring prehistoric art to
inform and attract tourists to the area.
- 2-3 pages
- Text of approximately 500-600 words
- Interspersed with several (at least 3) photos or drawings of the art and the
archaeological site.
- In-text citations (APA)
- Full reference list at the end.
- Save as .pdf (i.e. adobe)
- Upload it to the Teams Assignments through Turnitin.
1. The geographical location of the rock art (country, region), as well as a description of the
geological (rock) location (cave, rock face, etc);
2. The archaeological period (or periods) in which the art was created (art may have been
created in the same location by different groups at different times);
3. The people or culture that likely created the art;
4. When the art was discovered, by whom;
5. What the art depicts, what is its probable/possible meaning, what is its significance;
6. How the art was made – what materials and techniques were used to create it;
7. The current situation regarding the art (is it protected, preserved, made a world heritage
site, etc.)
8. Photos /images of the art (interspersed throughout the text)
9. References (on a separate page, in APA format)
1. Maros-Pangkep karst in Indonesia, nearly as old as European prehistoric cave art,
challenging long-held Eurocentric views about the birth of human creativity.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/prehistoric-rock-art-visit-around-world-
180952989/?page=1
Cambridge dictionary: Geological location: Karst, rock face: “Area of land formed of rock such
as limestone worn away by water to make caves and other formations”
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/karst
2. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/site/prehistoric.htm
Sulawesi Cave Art (Indonesia) was made around (handprint in Leang Bulu’ Sipong)
37,900 BCE to (babirusa in Leang Timpuseng) 33,400 BCE: Middle Paleolithic to Upper
Paleolithic. (from https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/prehistoric-cave-art-of-maros-
pangkep: Pleistocene-era rock art)
3. https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/rockartnetwork/
oldest_cave_painting_found_in_indonesia.php
Uncertainly, the research team believes the artwork was made by Homo sapiens, and not
the Denisovans.
https://www.responsibletravel.com/holidays/sulawesi/travel-guide/maros-pangkep-karst-
forest
There are many theories surrounding the creators of the paintings, one is that “they were
hunter-gatherers, who took shelter in the caves during the rainy season. However, as
some of them have hand prints at their entrances, they may represent a mark of
occupancy.”
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-art/index.html
“very small, highly mobile hunter-gatherer populations, who’d have moved round
frequently from site to site and spent most of their time out in the forest rather than the
caves themselves”, caves used only during rainy seasons also speculated.
4. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/prehistoric/sulawesi-cave-art.htm
1905-6: Swiss naturalists Fritz and Paul Sarasin: scientific expedition to ID, returned with
vivid accounts of ancient rock paintings, but offered few specifics. No written accounts,
just verbal so far.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/prehistoric-cave-art-of-maros-pangkep
The art was known by locals long before but was officially known to the world from the
works published by H.R Van Heekeren, a Dutch archaeologist, in 1950.
5. https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/prehistoric-cave-art-of-maros-pangkep
The rock art displays handprints and animals. The rock art’s purpose + significance =
unclear. Commonly, rock art sites are ceremonial, but no evidence. One theory: “rock art
= early library cataloging the animals and fish eaten by the people who dwelled there.”,
or attempt to communicate with the spiritual realm.
6. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-art/index.html Hand stencil:
red ocher, source unknown but maybe from trade with other hunter-gatherer groups.
https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/rockartnetwork/
oldest_cave_painting_found_in_indonesia.php: “To make handprints, the artists would
have had to place their hands on a surface then spit pigment over it, and the team are
hoping to try to extract DNA samples from residual saliva.”
https://www.responsibletravel.com/holidays/sulawesi/travel-guide/maros-pangkep-karst-
forest
People blew out red pigment around their hands which were placed on the rock surface.
7. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-art/index.html Current
situation regarding the art: Many of the caves in the region are protected by law, and
some are tourist destinations. For example, Bantimurung, a cave, is home to a butterfly
park. Hornbills nest above a flooded cave in Pangkep. There are some unprotected areas
= dynamited for cement, “a central driver of the economy in this developing region.”
Sardi, R. (2014). [Detail of a hunting scene in a cave painting on the island of Sulawesi,
Indonesia] [Photograph]. GriffithNews. https://news.griffith.edu.au/2020/12/18/griffith-team-
awarded-science-magazine-top-10-scientific-breakthrough-of-the-year/
Riza, K. (2014). [Paleolithic hand stencils found in the Maros-Pangkep karst region]
[Photograph]. CNNtravel. https://www.cnn.com/travelwh/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-
art/index.html
Aubert, M. (2017). [Old cave painting of a wild pig] [Photograph]. Bradshaw Foundation.
https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/rockartnetwork/oldest_cave_painting_found_in_indonesia
.php
A hidden gem in Indonesia, discover the Maros-Pangkep karst, a prehistoric chef-
d’œuvre nestled in the tropical jungle of the island of Sulawesi.
For starters, what is a karst? It’s an area of land formed of rock such as limestone worn
away by water to make caves and other formations (Cambridge University Press & Assessment,
2023).
What seems to be the oldest discovered paleolithic art in the world, the Maros-Pangkep
karst defies the Eurocentric theory where the old continent was the birthplace of human
creativity (Smithsonian Magazine, 2014).
In fact, the Pleistocene-era rock art spans 10,000 years between the Middle and the Upper
Paleolithic with most of its artwork being around 25,000 years old (Encyclopedia of Art
Education). Its works varies from the world’s oldest art, a wild pig, created at least 43,900 years
ago based on Uranium-series dating (Norman) to the world’s oldest hand painting, dating from
37,900 BCE (Encyclopedia of Art Education)!
Researchers believe the artwork was made by Homo sapiens, and the theories
surrounding the creation are many (Bradshaw Foundation, 2021). One is that the painters were
highly mobile hunter-gatherers taking shelter in the karst when the rainy season came. The
presence of handprints, however, makes us speculate otherwise: the caves could have been a
permanent shelter (Responsible Travel, 2023) (Sutcliffe, 2016).
The Maros-Pangkep karst was known by locals long before but was first discovered by
Europeans by Swiss naturalists Fritz and Paul Sarasin, on a scientific expedition to Indonesia
during 1905 and 1906. They returned to Europe with vivid accounts of ancient rock paintings,
but not enough specifics to provide a written account (Encyclopedia of Rock Education).
The first written account was by Dutch archaeologist Hendrik Robbert Van Heekeren in
1950, with the publication of Rock-paintings and other prehistoric discoveries near Maros (Atlas
Obscura, 2017).
Although the caves possess many artworks, their purpose and significance are unclear.
Commonly, rock art sites are ceremonial, but there is no evidence to support this theory. One is
that it’s an early library cataloging the animals by the habitants of the island, another is it’s an
attempt to communicate with the spiritual realm (Atlas Obscura, 2017).
To do the handprints, the artists placed their hands on a surface, and spit red ochre over it.
Interestingly, the team hopes to try to extract DNA samples from the dried saliva (Sutcliffe,
2016). Furthermore, the red ochre used is not native to Indonesia, suggesting that it was perhaps
obtained from trade with other hunter gatherer groups.
Today, many of the caves are protected by law, some have become tourist destinations,
and much of the karst is a UNESCO Global Geopark (UNESCO, 2023). For example,
Bantimurung, a cave, is home to a butterfly park, and hornbills nest above a flooded cave in
Pangkep. Many areas remain unprotected and are dynamited for cement, “a central driver of the
economy in this developing region” (Sutcliffe, 2016).
References
Atlas Obscura. (2017, July 31). Prehistoric Cave Art of Maros Pangkep.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/prehistoric-cave-art-of-maros-pangkep
Aubert, M. (2017). [Old cave painting of a wild pig] [Photograph]. Bradshaw Foundation.
https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/rockartnetwork/oldest_cave_painting_found_in_in
donesia.php
Bradshaw Foundation. (2021, January 14). Oldest cave painting found in Indonesia.
https://www.bradshawfoundation.com/rockartnetwork/oldest_cave_painting_found_in_in
donesia.php
Cambridge University Press & Assessment. (2023). KARST. Cambridge Dictionary.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/karst
Encyclopedia of Art Education. Sulawesi Cave Art, Leang Timpuseng Prehistoric Paintings.
Encyclopedia of Stone Age Art. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/prehistoric/sulawesi-
cave-art.htm
Geiling, N. (2014, October 16). Prehistoric Rock Art to Visit Around the World. Smithsonian
Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/prehistoric-rock-art-visit-around-
world-180952989/?page=1
Norman, J. A Cave Painting of a Wild Pig Found on Sulawesi May be the Worlds Oldest
Figurative Cave Art. Retrieved November 12, 2023, from
https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=5292
Responsible Travel. (2023). Maros Pangkep Karst Forest, Sulawesi.
https://www.responsibletravel.com/holidays/sulawesi/travel-guide/maros-pangkep-karst-
forest
Riza, K. (2014). [Paleolithic hand stencils found in the Maros-Pangkep karst region]
[Photograph]. CNNtravel. https://www.cnn.com/travelwh/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-
art/index.html
Sardi, R. (2014). [Detail of a hunting scene in a cave painting on the island of Sulawesi,
Indonesia] [Photograph]. GriffithNews. https://news.griffith.edu.au/2020/12/18/griffith-
team-awarded-science-magazine-top-10-scientific-breakthrough-of-the-year/
Sutcliffe, T. (2016, May 22). In South Sulawesi, Indonesia, find some of the world’s oldest cave
art. CNNtravel. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/sulawesi-world-oldest-art/index.html
UNESCO. (2023, May 24). Maros Pangkep UNESCO Global Geopark.
https://www.unesco.org/en/iggp/geoparks/maros-pangkep
