cave art

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Recommended: Essay on ancient art cave paintings

Cave Paintings have been dated back 30,000 years ago, during a time called the Upper Paleolithic Period where homo-sapiens began to express themselves through rock art and drawings on the walls throughout caves in mostly France and Africa. The process of the art being made was resulted from rocks being ground up to make pigments which were often first engraved into the cave walls or painted directly on them in black and ochre colors. There is no absolute reason behind these cave paintings, but scientist have thought of theories behind the talented artists work. The main three categories that have been studied are animal drawings, shamanism, and human paintings; all of which give reason to a new evolution of the human mind and how the meaning behind the cave art can be an insightful look at what homo-sapiens experienced thousands of years ago. One hypothesis behind the meaning of cave art is that is was a ritual meant to bring good luck to the hunt. During the Paleolithic period many paintings of animals such as bison, deer, cattle, horses, mammoths, bears, and reindeer were cascaded across the walls of caves along with geometric shapes. Although the meaning behind the geometric shapes is still unclear, the animal drawings could be seen as a symbol of what homo-sapiens hunted and this desire for food could have driven the imagination to create art within the caves. Possibly the animals that had been killed were painted in honor of their sacrifice, or perhaps they were painted on account of a successful hunt as a way of remembering their good fortune. This could possibly be their way of keeping a journal or a record of the animals that had been killed or seen but not hunted. The theory of the painting bringing the hunters good... ... middle of paper ... ... cave art that has been created and studied throughout France and Africa is a great tool to understanding what homo-sapiens have experienced and how they survived through the thousands of years, yet there is no definite answer to the reason behind these paintings. Whether it be for joy and creative reasons, or to document the types of animals and necessities of life that were a conscious need and tool of survival will remain unknown. The depiction of animals versus humans, and how shamanism can be a reason of how they could have been created is the best standing explanation to the cave art. The meaning behind the drawings may not be as factual as dating the art, the process and materials used, or the place the art has been found; but the meaning and what has driven our ancestors to this spur of creativity is the most important question that still remains unanswered.

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