10 days of Paleoanthropology, Paleolithic Art and Food & Wine of Cantabrian (Northern) Spain. Excellent tour for Arizona State University’s Institute of Human Origins #paleolithic #paleoart #caveart #paleoanthropology #ancientart

ASU-IHO (Arizona State University- Institute of Human Origins) diving deep into the Paleoanthropology and Paleolithic Art & Archaeology of the Cantabrian area of Northern Spain. Excellent group of board members, interested folks and subject matter experts. #paleoanthropology #Paleolithic #paleoart #caveart #humanorigins

Human Evolution at the hands of the person who had dug many of the million of years old fossils out of the ground was humbling. Dr. Yohannes Haile-Selassie is one of the world’s foremost paleontologists and having him share his knowledge and personal field and research experiences was a privilege and unique learning experience. #humanevolution #paleoanthropology #atapuerca #NortherSpain #UNESCOworldheritage

Hanging out with 1 million year old fossils while visiting the CENIEH (National Center for Investigation of Human Evolution) with one of the directors of Atapuerca, and the director of the Arizona State University’s Institute of Human Origins…. quite a privilege. #paleolithic #paleoanthropology #pleistocene #archaelogy #humanevolution

Revisiting and exploring caves north of the Pyrenees: Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Hautes-Pyrénées, Ariège, Calanques, Ardèche, Lot and Gironde. Connecting dots and opening perspectives. Excellent week in France.

Three Lines. Some 20,000 years ago or more, a Paleolithic “artist” engraved three separate lines to make the figure of an animal. There are two of these figures in this image. Can you see them? What animal are they? One line for the face and ear. A second for the front of the neck and chest (forming the snout with the first line). A third for the back of the neck and dorsal line (creating the ear by meeting the first line just off center). Three lines. Enough to identify this animal. Did you guess deer? These 3-lined deer are always engraved, typically found in cave entrances or rock shelters and able to be seen by the light of day. There is one notable exception of a depiction inside a cave, but a true rarity. These figures pertain to a culture of a certain moment in time and confined to a specific geographic area. Is it just a deer? Or is there another meaning? These figures are repeated and follow a cultural convention whereby three lines are enough for you to identify the animal. No need for more details (if some do have a few more). It seems the importance was the concept of the animal, transmitting a message in a code we cannot crack. Simple, yet subtle. Ideas recorded in rock. #Paleolithic #PaleoArt #RockArt #Archaeology #CaveArt

Beyond Surviving. A ritual space deep in a cave? Paleolithic people survived by hunting/gathering/fishing for seasonal and geographic resources quite opportunistically. At times they lived in outdoor camps, at others they sheltered at natural cave entrances. Cave entrances provide a drier, warmer, less exposed place to carry out daily life. These afforded a roof over their head where they could have the benefit from natural light during the day, as well as make a fire to stay warm, cook and extend light into the night, likely for socializing once daytime “survival” activities had been carried out. At times, they entered deeper into the darker areas of caves, likely for purposes beyond physical survival. They decorated walls and ceilings with figures and symbols using engraving, drawing, painting and rarely, sculpting. At this cave in Northern Spain, there is evidence of what appears to be remains of a hut deep within the darkness of the cave. The floor is covered in fractured animal bones, the walls/ceilings are decorated, there are remains of charcoal and ochre, objects of personal adornment and fine pieces of portable art were also found. What was this space used for? It is not hospitable like at the entrance. What activities were carried out here? Rituals, ceremonies, rights of passage, initiations, reflection, meditation, visions ..???? This is not an everyday activity. Who took part in it? What was the purpose? For a period that lasted for tens of thousands of years, there simply is not much evidence of activity deep in caves. Over more than 30,000 years they could have decorated the tens of thousands of caves accesible to them. They didn’t. They decorated a few hundred. These were special places then and they remain so today. Visiting them is a real privilege. #paleoart #caveart #prehistoricart #paleolithic #rockart #paleolitico #archaeology #anthropology #archaeologylovers #ancientart #ancientartifacts #prehistory #prehistoric #arthistory #ritual #ritualart