Leang Karampuang Cave

A painting created at least 51,200 years ago was discovered in the limestone cave of Leang Karampuang in the Maros-Pangkep region of the Indonesian island.

About Leang Karampuang Cave:

•   It is a limestone cave located on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.
•   Key findings

o  A scene of humans interacting with a pig painted on a cave wall is found in the cave.

o  The scene, dominated by a representation of a pig that is standing upright along with three smaller human-like figures, is painted in a single shade of dark red pigment.

o  One figure seems to be holding an object near the pig’s throat. Another is directly above the pig’s head in an upside-down position with legs splayed out.

o  The third figure is larger and grander in appearance than the others; it is holding an unidentified object and is possibly wearing an elaborate headdress.

o  This painting predates the cave paintings of Europe, which is at El Castillo in Spain, dating to about 40,800 years ago.

•   The researchers interpreted the painting as a narrative scene, which they said would make it the oldest-known evidence of storytelling in art.
•  The earliest Sulawesi rock art is not 'simple, it is quite advanced and shows the mental capacity of people at the time.