Seán Burke

If a bison is going to leap out and attack you or something, you have to really be paying attention to these subtle visual cues of animals. So my little pet theory is then where we see faces all the time, they're seeing animals all the time. And that might account for why animals are such a dominant theme in Paleolithic art.

I definitely think so. And this is actually one theory that people have had, particularly about these very big caves and the famous caves like Lascaux or Altamira, is that maybe these are aggregation sites. So we're dealing with mobile hunter-gatherer populations. And for most of the year, they're sort of off doing their thing. But maybe they come together seasonally, aggregate in one spot.

I definitely think so. And this is actually one theory that people have had, particularly about these very big caves and the famous caves like Lascaux or Altamira, is that maybe these are aggregation sites. So we're dealing with mobile hunter-gatherer populations. And for most of the year, they're sort of off doing their thing. But maybe they come together seasonally, aggregate in one spot.

So you have different populations of people coming together. And then they're producing art. Maybe that's like

So you have different populations of people coming together. And then they're producing art. Maybe that's like

a way of reinforcing sort of community bonds and and connecting with these people that you haven't seen in a long time or yeah it could be that they need a common language and that's bison you know wow yeah that's great that's visual storytelling you know it's a it's show don't tell truly sure it's a very ancient principle it turns out isn't it you know

a way of reinforcing sort of community bonds and and connecting with these people that you haven't seen in a long time or yeah it could be that they need a common language and that's bison you know wow yeah that's great that's visual storytelling you know it's a it's show don't tell truly sure it's a very ancient principle it turns out isn't it you know

There's also this idea that it's a way to exchange information. You know, some people have been off in Germany and they've seen something there and they need to communicate it efficiently.

There's also this idea that it's a way to exchange information. You know, some people have been off in Germany and they've seen something there and they need to communicate it efficiently.

Yeah, well, it's kind of Sean's first interpretation. They were just bored and doing it. It's what we call this art for art's sake approach. idea. So maybe it didn't mean anything. They're just bored and doodling on the walls. I don't agree with that one. I think it's a lot to invest. If you're just bored, you can do other things, right? And not go into a deep cave.

Yeah, well, it's kind of Sean's first interpretation. They were just bored and doing it. It's what we call this art for art's sake approach. idea. So maybe it didn't mean anything. They're just bored and doodling on the walls. I don't agree with that one. I think it's a lot to invest. If you're just bored, you can do other things, right? And not go into a deep cave.

There's lots of ideas about shamanism and ritual. Yeah, that's a very common interpretation.

There's lots of ideas about shamanism and ritual. Yeah, that's a very common interpretation.

So we've talked a lot about the people who made cave art, how they lived, where they lived, and maybe even what they used the art for, right? And we've discussed that maybe other species were engaging in making cave art too. But when we imagine a cave artist, what do we see? We tend to imagine these were adults engaging in this behavior.

So we've talked a lot about the people who made cave art, how they lived, where they lived, and maybe even what they used the art for, right? And we've discussed that maybe other species were engaging in making cave art too. But when we imagine a cave artist, what do we see? We tend to imagine these were adults engaging in this behavior.

And this is really a problem in archaeology more broadly, but especially when we're dealing with this period. But we know, or we should know, that children were around at this period too. And so we must be seeing some children's behaviours in the archaeological record as well.

And this is really a problem in archaeology more broadly, but especially when we're dealing with this period. But we know, or we should know, that children were around at this period too. And so we must be seeing some children's behaviours in the archaeological record as well.

So there have been some studies looking at the anatomical measurements of hand stencils or traces left by the fingers, we call those finger flutings, that have demonstrated that children were there alongside adults making this art. So this adds a whole new dimension to understanding cave arts.

So there have been some studies looking at the anatomical measurements of hand stencils or traces left by the fingers, we call those finger flutings, that have demonstrated that children were there alongside adults making this art. So this adds a whole new dimension to understanding cave arts.

So what we thought was actually an adult activity exclusively, we know that children are actively participating in and probably been taught the importance of this as a way to preserve knowledge in the society. But in my recent research, I've also shown some evidence of children kind of doing their own thing with cave art, which I think is really cool, too.