Cave paintings suggest that ancient humans under-populated the stars much better than we thought



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<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Popular mechanics"data-reactid =" 31 "> Popular mechanics

By studying rock paintings in Turkey, Spain, France and Germany, the researchers came to the conclusion that humanity's ancestors were smarter than it was previously credited. A new study indicates that these famous paintings are not just decorative, they represent a complex understanding of astronomy prior to Greek civilization.

40,000 years ago, scientists thought that ancient humans had the knowledge to follow the evolution of time according to the movement of stars in the sky. They understood a concept called "precession of the equinoxes" – the idea that the movement of the Earth was at the origin of the changes of position of the stars, and not of the stars themselves.

<p class = "web-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "History generally attributes this idea to Nicaea's Hipparchus, a famous Greek astronomer who is "considered by many historians as a scientist of the highest quality and perhaps the greatest astronomical genius among the ancient Greeks", according to the Encyclopedia of ancient history. Several cultures, from China to Babylon, have discovered the idea independently. "Data-reactid =" 34 "> History usually attributes this idea to Nicaeus Hipparchus, a famous Greek astronomer" considered by many historians as a scientist of the highest quality. and perhaps the greatest astronomical genius among the ancient Greeks ", according to the Encyclopedia of Ancient History.Many cultures, from China to Babylon, have discovered the idea independently.

It now seems that Hipparchus was also late, thanks to a new understanding of rock paintings.

<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The researchers may have used the most important rock paintings world famous for helping them make their decision – Paleolithic art inside the Lascaux caves, in the south of France. "The well scene" Scientists now believe that the image of a dying man was created to commemorate a comet striking the planet around 15,200 BCE. "data-reactid =" 36 "> The researchers may have used the world's most famous rock paintings to help them make their decision – Paleolithic Art in the Lascaux Caves, in Southern France L & # 39; study of a drawing called "The Shaft Scene" ("The Well Scene") has led to believe that the image of a dying man was created to commemorate a comet hitting the planet around 15,200 years old

<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "This determination was made by a combination of radiocarbon dating the study of the history of the atmosphere. At about the same time as "The Shaft Scene" took place, a climate change event Ice cream carrot from Greenland, a former ice that has been storing climate records for over 100,000 years. This determination was made by a combination of radiocarbon dating and atmospheric history study. Shaft Scene "was underway, a climate change event was recorded in a core of Greenland ice, an ancient ice that stores climate data of over 100,000 years.

When dating the paintings of the drawings, the scientists were able to find when they were applied to the walls. Using powerful computer programs, they were able to compare these dates with the expected positions of the stars.

<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "The researchers now think that several ancient rock paintings have been realized taking into account climate change. Göbekli Tepe, a mysterious archaeological site in southeastern Turkey, centered on the one known as Pillar 43, "can be considered as a memorial of the Younger Dryas [a period of abrupt climate change 14,500 years ago], "they say in their paper, available in pre-print Researchers now believe that several ancient rock paintings have been made in recognition of climate change. Specifically, the stone pillars of Göbekli Tepe, a mysterious archaeological site located in southeastern Turkey, focus on pillar 43, "can be considered a memorial to the proposed event for Younger Dryas [a period of abrupt climate change 14,500 years ago], "they say in their paper, available in pre-print on arXiv.

Photo Credit: Martin B. Sweatman / Alistair Coombs

<p class = "canvas-atom web-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "From a cave site to a site of cave, and from one era to the next, researchers have found a consistent method of timekeeping. "Ancient societies had devised similar methods to determine dates regardless of one's the other, be it in the south of Turkey or in the north of Spain.Even the oldest status of the world, the Hohlenstein-Stadel Cave Man-Man From 38,000 BC BC, it conforms to this system of time measurement. "data-reactid =" 60 "> From a cave site to a cave site, and from one era to the next, researchers have found a consistent method of timekeeping. Similar methods to determine the dates independently of each other, whether in southern Turkey or in northern Spain, even the world's oldest statute, the Hohlenstein-Stadel Lion-Man Cave dating from 38,000 BC

"The ancient rock art shows that people had advanced knowledge of the night sky during the last ice age," said Martin Sweatman, of the School of Engineering at the University of Edinburgh, who led the study, in a press release. "Intellectually, they were hardly different from us today."

<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "Source: University of Edinburgh "data-reactid =" 62 "> Source: University of Edinburgh

<p class = "canvas-atom canvas-text Mb (1.0em) Mb (0) – sm Mt (0.8em) – sm" type = "text" content = "(# You might also like,,)"data-reactid =" 63 ">(# You might also like,,)

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