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Art represents the manifestation and interpretation of human imagination, expressed in a way that triggers a significant conscious response. Some might say that life would lack purpose without art, but meaning itself depends on a conscious being to define it. In a sense, we are living embodiments of art. Nietzsche famously claimed that without music, life would be a mistake, and he wasn't wrong. Art has existed since the dawn of humanity, and even animals have shown the ability to create art.
From Salvador Dali's surrealism to Michelangelo's iconic sculptures and, of course, the magnificent and awe-striking Sistine Chapel ceiling, which can touch even those who claim to not 'understand' art, the creation of art has deep roots. It likely began with simple adornments on tools, stones, or even the bodies of deceased loved ones. Grave art and face painting are both forms of art. Art surrounds us constantly and is nearly unavoidable. Prehistoric humans left behind an impressive amount of art, with various discoveries shedding light on their lives and their culture. Here are ten significant prehistoric art pieces and the fascinating stories behind them.
10. Apollo 11 Stones
The Apollo 11 Stones are a collection of seven stones, two of which were once a single piece, featuring depictions of animals. What makes the Apollo 11 Stones so remarkable is their incredible age, dating back to around 25,000 BC. Why is this significant? It highlights the advancement of humanity at that time. By this point, humans were already creating art, engraving their everyday experiences into stone, leaving behind evidence for us to discover some 27,000 years later.
These artifacts were uncovered in the Apollo 11 Cave in Namibia. The stones, marked with charcoal, ocher, and various other materials, have provided valuable insights into the lives of the people who lived during that era. The stones are named after the historic Apollo 11 landing because the news of the successful mission was being broadcast on the radio shortly after the archaeologists' discovery. What is truly astounding is that within the cave, archaeologists found evidence of human occupation spanning around 100,000 years, proving that the term 'cave man' is a very real concept, revealing how our ancient ancestors survived in the harsh Paleolithic world. The Apollo 11 Stones remain the oldest known example of representational art discovered in Africa to date.
9. Venus of Willendorf
The Venus of Willendorf is a limestone figurine, with varying estimates of its age, most commonly dating it between 28,000 and 25,000 BC, placing it in the same period as the Apollo 11 Stones, during the Paleolithic era. There are also later versions of the Venus, dating between 24,000 and 22,000 BC, generally depicting nude women, potentially symbolizing a fertility goddess or, alternatively, a depiction of men honoring women and their life-giving powers.
The harsh reality of Paleolithic life was that many mothers lost their lives in the process of giving birth, a somber reminder of how much progress we’ve made and the sacrifices made by those who came before us. In the Venus of Willendorf, significant focus was placed on her breasts and pubic area, while the rest of the figure remains quite basic, with the artist spending little time on the limbs, muscle details, or other aspects. This offers us a window into the creator’s mindset.
Dating Venus figurines proves particularly challenging because the term “prehistoric” signifies a time before written language. As a result, researchers must rely on methods like inference, comparison with other artifacts, and radiocarbon dating to determine when these objects were made.
8. Lion Man
If you thought the ancient Egyptian Sphinx was impressive, then the Lion Man will amaze you: a carving made from a mammoth tusk, dating back an astonishing 35,000 to 40,000 years. This remarkably ancient piece of art offers a rare glimpse into the early spiritual beliefs of humanity. The statue depicts a human figure with a lion’s head, much like the Egyptian Sphinx (but in reverse), predating it by thousands of years.
The sculpture stands at 31.1 centimeters (12.2 inches) tall and was crafted using a simple flint tool in ancient prehistory. Its age places it firmly within the Ice Age. Discovered in 1939 alongside numerous other artifacts from the same people and era, Lion Man stands out as a remarkable example of prehistoric human art from the Paleolithic period. It demonstrates that humans did not need a written language to envision supernatural beings, possibly even gods. Ivory carvings were prevalent during this time, highlighting humanity's resilience in enduring the harsh cold while still creating art that continues to captivate and inspire us today.
7. Jericho Skull
The Jericho Skull is no ordinary skull from prehistoric times, which might have been decorated with ocher or charcoal. Instead, it’s a fully artistic sculpture in the form of a human head. This plastered skull is meticulously modeled after a real human, making it one of the earliest portrait sculptures in human history. Shells were placed in the eye sockets to create a white appearance resembling human eyes. The craftsmanship is incredibly detailed for the Neolithic period, around 7200 BC.
Researchers have even used CT scans to reconstruct the face of the man whose head became the Jericho Skull. He lived around 9,200 years ago and had clearly experienced some hardships, as his face showed signs of trauma, including a broken nose and a head injury shortly after birth that affected his skull's shape. Life was undeniably difficult, even 9,200 years ago.
The Jericho Skull is housed at the British Museum in London. It was discovered alongside other artifacts in the Jericho region of the West Bank, one of the longest continuously inhabited human settlements, believed to have been first established around 9000 BC.
6. Anthropomorphic Stele
Next on the list is the anthropomorphic stele, originating from the city of Ha’il in Saudi Arabia. This free-standing stone sculpture is carved to resemble a human figure, standing tall, and is believed to date back to the sixth to fourth millennia BC. It’s not the only one of its kind; similar sculptures have been uncovered in neighboring cities, all dating back to the pre-Islamic era of Saudi Arabia, and they all share a distinct, unique expression, reflecting the culture and period.
These artifacts were created by various nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes who lived in the region long before the advent of Islam. The people who carved them were constantly on the move, driven by the shifting climate in search of suitable living conditions. It’s important to note that the area, which is now a desert, was once more of a savanna, although the climate still fluctuated. While the exact purpose of the stele remains unclear, it likely held religious significance and, with its solemn expression, might have been used to adorn a prehistoric burial.
5. Cong
The cong are jade artifacts from ancient China, primarily used in religious rituals and burials. These decorative pieces are round in form, with squared corners sculpted around the edges, creating a fascinating combination of both circular and square shapes. These objects belong to the Liangzhu culture, a Neolithic civilization near present-day Shanghai, dating back to the third millennium BC. The people of this culture possessed advanced tools that enabled them to carve these intricate designs.
The cong pieces themselves are cylindrical, with a hollowed-out center, and are often paired with bi discs—round, flat objects resembling the weights used on a bench press bar, which fit snugly inside. While the exact purpose of these mysterious objects remains unclear, the significant time and effort put into creating them indicate their importance to the ancient Chinese people, reflecting their cultural and spiritual value.
4. The Hall Of The Bulls
The Hall of the Bulls is a section of the Lascaux cave near the village of Montignac, France, and it contains paintings of animals that are not only amazingly detailed and stunningly beautiful but powerfully indicative of the imagination and abilities of the people who created them. This is essentially the Sistine Chapel of the Paleolithic period, in that the artists planned and plotted tirelessly to adorn this cave with the most perfect animal paintings the world had ever seen. This isn’t your rudimentary cave painting here; these are gorgeous walls, covered with various depictions of animals, mainly bulls and bison.
The paintings are estimated to have been created between 16,000 and 14,000 BC in the cave, which lies in a rural part of Southwestern France. One of the murals spans a massive 3.5 meters (11.5 ft) wide, making it much larger than the usual cave painting we’re used to seeing in photos. The elegance of this artwork, considering the time period, is nothing more than mind-blowing, especially when we consider that these people lived short, brutal, often cold, often painful lives but still managed to find it within themselves to celebrate the beauty of existence and what was important to them.
3. Bhimbetka Cupules
While not as elaborate or visually striking, the Bhimbetka cupules claim a top spot in the prehistoric art world due to their extraordinary age. The Bhimbetka site in India features numerous cupules—small, rounded depressions carved into rock. Although there are cave paintings here that are about 30,000 years old, the cupules are the real highlight, with some believed to date back to at least 290,000 BC. There are even theories suggesting they might be as old as 700,000 BC. Incredibly, these spherical marks may predate humanity itself.
The site encapsulates a staggering span of human history etched into its walls. Over countless generations, people sought refuge here, using the cave for shelter, cooking, and protection from the unforgiving natural world. The walls hold, in a sense, the entire story of humanity, from the dawn of our species, long before the written word existed, to long after. The site, alongside the other items featured in this list, stands as a profound testament to how far we’ve come and how much further we could go if we dare to dream of futures far beyond our present.
2. Stonehenge
Stonehenge is among the most renowned prehistoric monuments on Earth. This colossal ring of stones seems to have been crafted as a site for worship, ceremonial practices, and profound importance in the ancient world. The construction of Stonehenge spanned several centuries, beginning around 3000 BC. Much like the Egyptian pyramids, this monumental structure raises questions about how Neolithic tribes managed to complete such a feat of engineering.
The story of Stonehenge began around 8000 to 7000 BC, when early humans began constructing wooden structures and digging ditches near the site. Over the millennia, people began stacking stones, creating a vast circular stone wall. Within this circle, larger stones were placed in the center. Every stone in the structure was carefully shaped using hammers. Some parts of the Stonehenge area were also used for burials, where earth was excavated with great care for the dead.
1. Prehistoric Tattoos
Tattoos, despite what your mother may tell you, are actually one of humanity’s most ancient art forms. Tattooing dates back not only to ancient times but also to prehistoric eras. However, ancient tattoos are often lost to history due to the natural decay of flesh after death. The practice of tattooing began as far back as the Neolithic period, and it was imbued with profound cultural and religious meaning across many civilizations worldwide.
Tattoos have been discovered on mummies and bog bodies across the globe. One famous example is Otzi the Iceman, who lived around 3300 BC and perished in the Swiss Alps, bearing multiple tattoos (some of which are shown above). Tattooing in those days was much more of a personal undertaking, as it lacked the convenience of modern machines and electricity. The ink used was often a mixture of blood and pigment, a far more labor-intensive process than today’s methods. This highlights the immense dedication and cultural importance of tattoos in prehistoric times, particularly during the Neolithic era.
