In December 2017, Hamrullah, an archaeologist on an Indonesian government survey, was exploring a cave system in Sulawesi, a large island in central Indonesia. He noticed a tantalizing opening in the ceiling above him. A skilled spelunker, Hamrullah (who only uses one name, like many Indonesians) climbed through the gap into an uncharted chamber. There, he laid eyes on a painting that is upending our understanding of prehistoric humans. The dramatic panel of art, dating back at least 43,900 years, is `the oldest pictorial record of storytelling and the earliest figurative artwork in the world,` a group of scientists said in a paper published Wednesday in Nature, although additional research...
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