Ancient cave paintings are not uncommon. Our ancestors were big fans of “graffiti”, which is why they are found on rocks and in caves in various parts of the world. The age of some of them exceeds 40 thousand years. However, a recent discovery by a team of archaeologists from Venezuela has puzzled scientists, despite the fact that it is believed to be over 4,000 years old. We are talking about rock art discovered in Canaimana National Park. According to scientists, these drawings belong to a previously unknown hunter-gatherer culture, which at some point spread over fairly large areas in South America.
Cave paintings discovered in Venezuela belong to an unknown culture. Photo source: livescience.com
Mysterious cave paintings in South America
Unusual drawings were discovered in the Canaima National Park, which is located in the southeastern part of Venezuela. As reported by Live Science, some of the drawings are in red and represent geometric symbols, such as lines of dots, rows of crosses, straight lines, etc. Together they form patterns that scientists call “pictograms.”
In addition, among them there are also ordinary images, for example, people, leaves, etc. There are also images carved on rocks, that is, so-called “petroglyphs”. They also represent different geometric motifs, as researchers report in Rock Art Research. The red color is due to the use of ocher, which the ancient Indians mined near the place where the drawings were discovered.
Mysterious drawings are made with ocher. Photo source: livescience.com
Scientists do not know for what purpose the local residents created these images. Earlier we told you that sometimes rock paintings even served as “road signs.” True, this time they had a clearly different function. Most likely, this rock painting had ritual significance.
Some images, according to researchers, could be associated with certain important events in the life of the Indians, such as the birth of a child, illness, good hunting, etc. Therefore, most likely, the places where the drawings were made were important to them, for example, as churches for modern people.
One of the sites where the rock paintings were discovered. Photo source: livescience.com
Previously unknown culture in South America
Similar rock paintings were discovered not only in Venezuela. Previously, scientists found the same rock painting in Brazil. It is 4,000 years old. Scientists do not know when the drawings in Venezuela were created, but they assume that they are even older.
In addition, similar drawings were found in Guiana and even in southern Colombia. But which people created them? There is no answer to this question yet. However, in the area where they were discovered, scientists also found remains of ceramics and stone tools. Most likely, these items were made by the same people who created the drawings.
Most likely, an unknown culture originated in the Canaima National Park. Photo source: livescience.com
Therefore, it is quite possible that further research will provide more information about the mysterious people. In addition, scientists assume that they will be able to find many other places with rock art. But the authors of the work are already drawing some conclusions. In their opinion, the mysterious culture originated in the Canaima National Park.
The park occupies a huge area, comparable to the size of a small country such as Belgium. It mainly consists of wooded and mountainous terrain. The park's most famous attraction is Angel Falls, the tallest waterfall in the world, albeit only on land. Let us remind you that there is a 3-kilometer-high waterfall underwater, which we talked about earlier.
Angel — The highest waterfall in the world is in Venezuela. Photo source: vodopads.ru
Most likely, the area around the waterfall was the “starting point”, from where it spread along the Amazon River, as well as to the other territories mentioned above. But for now these are only assumptions that need confirmation. Be that as it may, scientists are calling for the protection of pictograms and other rock art as valuable objects of cultural heritage.
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Finally, we note that the study of rock paintings sometimes allows you to make unexpected discoveries. For example, as we previously told, one of the 4000-year-old rock paintings showed what the Sahara Desert looked like thousands of years ago. At that time, she had much more pleasant living conditions.