Stone Age pebble may be oldest engraving ever

[Marrinan]

"A colorful pebble bearing a sequence of linear incisions may be the world's oldest engraving.

The object, which will be described in the April issue of the Journal of Archaeology, dates back about 100,000 years ago and could also be the world’s oldest known abstract art. It was recovered from Klasies River Cave in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. "

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46506059/ns/technology_and_science-science/#.T0g_hvXvMsJ

 

[Dragonsfire]

WOW! Still looks better than some of my attempts!

 

[rod]

Fred,

Thank you for this interesting post! It should be a fascinating question for us all.

I have written before about my enthusiasm for the series:

"History of the world in 100 objects" by the director of the British Museum. Download the podcasts here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/ahow

You will love to listen as you engrave, and it goes deeply into when humans went from utilitarian artifacts to the first signs of abstract art.

Clearly your example appears to be incised by home sapiens. The first signs of writing, as found in clay tablets in Babylonia were not examples of literary art, but chunks of accounting transactions. Then again, and much later into the Viking culture, their language, called Runes, looked somewhat like the non parallel incised lines seen above. As an aside, in the Scottish Orkney Isles, Scara Brae, was uncovered in the 1800's after sand blew off it, giving us completely furnished stone houses from thousands of years back, and in mint condition, except for Viking graffiti scratched on the walls, and from about 900 ad, it was written in Runes, and looked a bit like the above photo... non parallel lines. Yet, it was inteligible writing, once the Runes code was cracked.

So what did the Viking Runes graffiti turn out to mean?

"... that Helga is one hot *****!..."

Human interests do not vary much with time after all?

Rod

 

[monk]

AS A CHILD, I FIDDLED COLLECTING FOSSILS AND SUCH. easy to think this material could have been an art media as it is relatively soft and easy to shape with something as soft as bone.

 

[Mike Fennell]

Then, again, it might be one jaw of the world's oldest engraver's vise, and there are still many practice plates lying around there to be found.

Mike Fennell

 

[Weldon47]

A colorful pebble bearing a sequence of linear incisions may be the world's oldest engraving.

The object, which will be described in the April issue of the Journal of Archaeology, dates back about 100,000 years ago and could also be the world’s oldest known abstract art. It was recovered from Klasies River Cave in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. "

And the client is still waiting, wondering, "HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE to get something engraved around here"?

Ha ha ha,

Weldon

 

[mitch]

So what did the Viking Runes graffiti turn out to mean?

"... that Helga is one hot *****!..."

i would have guessed, "For a good time, call..."

 

[Andrew Biggs]

I'm skeptical about the abstract art bit..............the guy could have just been trying to light a match on a rock or bored out of his tree waiting for a mammoth to kill and whittling away at a rock with his thumbnail.

Now if it had the entire Lords Prayer on it then maybe I would become a believer.

Cheers
Andrew

 

[Jane]

I'm skeptical about the abstract art bit..............the guy could have just been trying to light a match on a rock or bored out of his tree waiting for a mammoth to kill and whittling away at a rock with his thumbnail.

Now if it had the entire Lords Prayer on it then maybe I would become a believer.

Cheers
Andrew

I agree Andrew, looks like something a bored person would do....or an accident

 

[mtgraver]

My common sense mind's first thought was something used to sharpen or enhance aka polish a sharp edge. Art .... well that one eludes me but I am a dungeon dweller and don't get out much, lol.
Rod those Vikings sure knew how to get their point across but with Mitch on that one, lol.
I may have to dig up the photo I took of a petroglyph in Alaska of an engraved rock on the coast with a spiral engraved on it. I use that concept when I give talks on engraving as this is one of the earliest engravings, meaning the use of a harder substance to remove a softer substance, in this case a rock, in contrast to etching.
Mark