Interpreting Prehistoric Cave Art
The Upper Paleolithic period began about 45,000 B.c.It is from this period,in several caves located in Europe,that archaeologists have discovered remarkable examples of prehistoric art.One of the early interpretations of cave art was that it was“art for the sake of art,” much as we today might go to a museum to see the skills of artists. This is a Western-culture-centered interpretation,however,and some would argue that there might be other,context-specific interpretations that are more suitable.The location of this art deep within dark caves, in which small flickering lamps would only reveal small portions of painted walls,also does not seem to fit with an interpretation of prehistoric“art galleries.”
Another early interpretation was based on the fact that most of the images are animals,and the majority of these,such as horses and bison,were hunted for food.This viewpoint became known as the “hunting magic”explanation.The drawing of the animals was interpreted as a way to magically ensure that an upcoming hunt would be successful.The hunting-magic interpretation has much appeal because we know that hunting was an important part of daily life during this period.And,in direct contrast to the art-for-art’s-sake explanation,the practice of these“rituals”deep within caves suggests that not everyone participated.There are many nonhunting images in the caves,however,that do not support this explanation,such as geometric shapes and human figures.
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