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World’s oldest known artwork in Indonesian cave dated using lasers

Nature, Published online: 09 October 2024; doi:10.1038/d41586-024-03248-x

Laser-induced imaging of radioactive elements was used to work out the age of an ancient cave painting on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The results reveal that the narrative scene is 51,200 years old, making it the earliest known example of representational art. This study challenges previous dating methods and suggests a deeper origin for human image-making and storytelling.