The settings of cave paintings not only contribute to the content of the paintings themselves but serve a fundamental purpose in determining the nature of such paintings. Historians analyze the cultural importance of cave paintings to ancient people and how their methods of creation altered their physical and mental conditions.
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Methods of Painting
Early humans and their children would navigate narrow, buried passageways in deep caverns carrying torches to light their way. “Scholars simulated the number of torches required for creating the images (Hoffmeister 2017; García and Castillejo 2015), and it is agreed that the parietal images could not have been created without artificial light.” Without access to the outside, the absence of light would require burning a fuel source at all times, ultimately leading to hypoxia or a severe lack of oxygen in a given space. According to archeologists, oxygen levels within these passageways rapidly declined to below 18%, the concentration that induces hypoxia in humans. In some cases, hypoxia can produce symptoms of ASC, or an altered state of consciousness, as referred to in the article. Ancient people likely normalized or even took advantage of their altered conditions to enhance their creative process, even without consuming any hallucinatory substances or active measures. “Hypoxia has been shown to increase dopamine hormone levels, resulting in hallucinations, and out-of-body experiences (Previc 2006).”
Considering that torches and fire were likely the only available source of light on site, oxygen likely drained disproportionately to the rate at which it was replaced. This is evidenced by remnants of hearths in remote areas without ventilation. Without any means to restore oxygen, compounded depletion via respiration and burning would induce nerve tissue damage and sensory deprivation experienced by people living at high altitudes or pilots undergoing pressure simulation.
Ritualistic Origins
Hundreds of paintings on decorated walls have been identified at the furthest depth of several caves in Europe. Cussac Cave, in Dordogne, France, for instance, includes 15 panels 130m from the entrance. The presence of paintings in remote passages buried deep within caves without evidence of any common activities may suggest a ritualistic purpose. “It appears that Upper Paleolithic people barely used the interior of deep caves for daily, domestic activities. Such activities were mostly performed at open-air sites, rockshelters, or cave entrances (Lewis-Williams and Clottes 2007).”
Understanding cross-cultural ritualistic context, such as the universal practice of shamanism in early cultures, it is not unreasonable to consider that hallucinatory behaviors induced by hypoxia may produce visions or spiritual connections to otherworldly imagery. Decorated cave walls may frequently depict realistic animal-like figures, though some paintings have a more indistinct or abstract nature. In some ancient cultures, animism strongly influenced daily life by assigning human characteristics to all natural objects. “In Maya cosmology (classic period, 250–900 AD), for example, the landscape was linked with powerful supernatural domains. The Maya maintained relationships with components of the world such as sky, soil, forest, animals, water, and birds, with daily ceremonies conducted in the field, houses, forest, and caves (Astor-Aguilera 2010; Houston 2014, pp. 27–40, 75).” This belief extends to other cultures as well, as demonstrated by Cherokee legend. “It was recently emphasized that the Cherokee viewed caves, crevices, and clefts in rocks as entrances to another world, often associated with transformative significance (Tankersley and Weeks 2020; Mooney 1900).”
The Legacy of Ancient Cultures
The relationship between other worlds and humans suggested by the methods of creating Paleolithic art is buttressed by physical evidence of unusual environmental conditions. Ancient people experienced altered consciousness that enabled a profound connection to the entities, ideas, feelings, or settings prevalent in their culture, inadvertently leaving fragments of early humanity studied even today.
References
Kedar, Y., Kedar, G., & Barkai, R. (2021). Hypoxia in PALEOLITHIC decorated Caves: The use
of artificial light in deep caves reduces oxygen concentration and Induces altered states
of consciousness. Time and Mind, 1-36. doi:10.1080/1751696x.2021.1903177
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