Anthropological Tapestries

Cave paintings. This is the Great Hall of the Bulls, in the Lascaux caves in France. They are around 17,000 years old. The superimposed dots of light are the stars as seen in the sky 17,000 years ago. This is illustrating a theory that the positioning of the paintings demonstrates ancient knowledge and use of astronomy. The animals seen here are horses, bulls and stags. The paintings were done by Cro-Magnon man, an early European culture of modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens), using red and yellow ochre. The paintings may have had religious and artistic significance. See image E448/080 for the paintings without the star map.

Cave of the hands. Cave paintings in the Cueva de las Manos (Cave of the Hands) in Santa Cruz, Patagonia, Argentina. These stencilled hands have been painted over each other over thousands of years. The paintings with the palest pigments date to 11,000 years ago, while the ones with the brighter pigments date to 7000 years ago.

Archeology Skull - Derived - Paleontology and Anthropology

Lascaux cave paintings. These paintings are on the walls of the Lascaux caves in Dordogne, south- western France. There are several halls; this is the Great Hall of the Bulls, which contains a 20- metre-long fresco of bulls, stags and horses. The caves contain some of the earliest known artwork, dating from around 17,000 years ago. They were painted by Cro-Magnon man, an ancestor of modern humans that lived in Europe.

Australopithecus afarensis landscape. Artwork of Australopithecus afarensis male and female hominins (left) walking across African savannah during the Pliocene. A. afarensis is one of several extinct hominin species that form an early part of the human evolutionary tree. It lived between 3.9 and 2.9 million years ago. The A. afarensis fossil 'Lucy' (1974) was found at the Hadar site in Ethiopia's Afar depression. The animals are elephants, antelopes, and a rhinoceros. For a similar scene, see C015/5357.

Lascaux II replica of a Lascaux cave painting. These are deer and auroch figures in the 'Great Hall of the Bulls'. The original Lascaux cave was closed to the public in 1963. The full-scale Lascaux II replica opened nearby in 1983. The Lascaux cave paintings in south-western France, around 17,000 years old, were painted by Cro-Magnon man, an early European culture of modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens), using red, brown and yellow ochre, and black manganese dioxide. They may have had religious and artistic significance. Photographed in 2010.

Ojibwe Native American petition. Artwork of the birch bark petition presented by Native Americans of the Ojibwe Tribe to US President Fillmore in 1849. The lines in the image unify the hearts and minds of the figures, confirming the authority of the delegation to speak for the Lake Superior Clans. The delegation is lead by Chief Buffalo of the Crane Clan. He is supported by a group of headmen represented by the totem of their clan: the catfish, man-fish, bear and three martens. The lakes are at bottom left. From a copy made by Seth Eastman in 1849.

Stone-age cave paintings. Artwork depicting various animals painted on the wall of a cave. These paintings are found in the Chauvet Cave, France, the site of the earliest known cave paintings (as of 2011), which have been dated to between 32,900 and 30,000 years ago.

Lascaux II replica of a Lascaux cave painting. These are horse and cow figures in the central gallery. The original Lascaux cave was closed to the public in 1963. The full-scale Lascaux II replica opened nearby in 1983. The Lascaux cave paintings in south-western France, around 17,000 years old, were painted by Cro-Magnon man, an early European culture of modern humans (Homo sapiens sapiens), using red, brown and yellow ochre, and black manganese dioxide. They may have had religious and artistic significance. Photographed in 2010.

Laetoli fossil footprints scene, illustration. The Laetoli footprints were preserved in volcanic ash deposits around 3.5 million years ago during the Pliocene. They were discovered in 1976 in Laetoli, Tanzania. As there were no knuckle impressions, this is evidence that these hominins, thought to be Australopithecus afarensis, walked upright. The ash was from an eruption of the Sadiman volcano, shown in the background. Also shown here are several of the mammals that lived at the time, including prehistoric elephants and giraffes.

Uffington white horse. Aerial photograph of a hill carving of a white horse. The Uffington carving is the oldest chalk-cut hillfigure in Britain. The horse has been dated by means of optical stimulated luminescence dating (OSL) which shows how long soil has been hidden from sunlight. OSL testing of the soil layers beneath the chalk infilling indicates that it has been buried since between 1400BC and 600BC, and most likely between 1200BC and 800BC. This dates the horse as from the Bronze Age. Photographed near Wantage, Oxfordshire.

Stone-age cave paintings. Artwork depicting various animals painted on the wall of a cave. These paintings are found in the Chauvet Cave, France, the site of the earliest known cave paintings (as of 2011), which have been dated to between 32,900 and 30,000 years ago.

Stone-age cave paintings. Artwork of horses painted on the wall of a cave. These paintings are found in the Chauvet Cave, France, the site of the earliest known cave paintings (as of 2011), which have been dated to between 32,900 and 30,000 years ago.

Homo ergaster hunters. Computer illustration of Homo ergaster ancient hominids hunting on the plains of the Olduvai Gorge, in what is now Tanzania, Africa. H. ergaster is one of several extinct hominin species that form part of the human evolutionary tree. It lived between 1.8 and 1.3 million years ago. Famous fossils of H. ergaster include 'Turkana Boy' (1984), found in the Koobi Fora region, near Lake Turkana, Kenya.