Archive · 27 Jan 2026
World’s Oldest Rock Art Found in Indonesia
Scientists found the oldest rock art ever in a cave in Indonesia.
It's a handprint that's at least 67,800 years old.
They used special lasers to figure out how old it is.
The handprint has a weird, pointy finger that might mean the artist was thinking in a special way.
This shows that people in Indonesia were smart and creative a long time ago, not just in Europe.
The handprint was made by spraying red paint over a hand on the cave wall.
This discovery helps us learn more about how people lived and thought a really long time ago.
The world's oldest known rock art, a hand stencil, was discovered in Liang Metanduno cave, Indonesia, dating back at least 67,800 years.
The handprint has a deliberately narrowed finger, suggesting complex thought and symbolic meaning.
The discovery challenges the previous belief that advanced human thinking and art originated in Europe.
The art was created by spraying ochre mixed with water over a hand pressed against the cave wall.
This finding is part of a growing body of evidence showing early human creativity and abstract thinking in various parts of the world.
- Who
- Archaeologists, including Maxime Aubert and Adam Brumm
- What
- Discovery of the world's oldest known rock art, a hand stencil
- When
- Dated to at least 67,800 years ago, discovered in 2015
- Where
- Liang Metanduno cave on Muna Island, Sulawesi, Indonesia
- Why
- To understand early human behavior and challenge Eurocentric views of ancient intelligence
- Location
- Liang Metanduno cave, Muna Island, Sulawesi, Indonesia
- Age
- At least 67,800 years old
- Discovery Year
- 2015
- Art Type
- Hand stencil
- Dating Method
- Laser techniques
- Researchers
- Maxime Aubert, Adam Brumm
- Published In
- Nature