Palaeolithic Art & Neanderthals: were they clever enough? Part 1: Iberian Cave Art

Abstract

Palaeolithic art and Neanderthals? Unless you have read recent research suggesting Neanderthals are responsible for the earliest parietal art in Europe this is not necessarily an association you conquer up. Western ideology has guided how we understand and interpret the past. This has led to an effect on our understanding of Palaeolithic art and the cognitive ability of Neanderthals. This article focuses on the cave paintings in Iberia that have recently been dated to before 40,000 years ago using Uranium Thorium(U-Th) dating method that extends the timeframe detected by C-14. Research results suggest Neanderthals may have created the first cave art in western Europe. It is no surprise that a debate ensues on the accuracy of the dating method and its results, while at the same time reprising the question of Neanderthals cognitive ability to create ‘art’.