Hand Shape Found in Indonesian Cave May Be the Oldest Rock Art Ever Discovered

A faded outline of a human hand found on a cave wall in Indonesia may officially be the oldest known rock art in the world, according to archaeologists who say it was created at least 67,800 years ago.

The ancient hand stencil was discovered inside a limestone cave on Muna Island, part of southeastern Sulawesi — a location that’s surprisingly popular with tourists. Despite being surrounded by newer cave paintings of animals and figures, the hand shape had gone unnoticed until now.

Researchers believe the stencil was created by placing a hand against the cave wall and spraying pigment around it, leaving behind its unmistakable outline. “They’re made with ochre. They put their hand there, and then they sprayed pigment. We can’t tell which technique they used. They could have put pigment in their mouth and sprayed it. They could have used some sort of instrument,” said Maxime Aubert, an archaeologist and geochemist from Griffith University in Australia.

Aubert, who served as the senior author of the study published Wednesday in Nature, described the discovery as both exciting and meaningful. He called it “thrilling and humbling.”