skywizard
1st February 2015, 01:21
Wading through cave art... Some of the
purported "swimmers" in the Cave of the Swimmers, Egypt.
________________________________________________
Giraffes and other animals not currently found in this part of
the desert, which suggests the area was wetter in the past.
http://i.livescience.com/images/i/000/073/696/iFF/cave-swimmers-egypt.jpg?1422640717http://i.livescience.com/images/i/000/073/698/i300/rock-art.jpg?1422640894
The Cave of the Swimmers has captivated imaginations ever since it was discovered by the Hungarian explorer László Almásy in 1933. The shallow cave's paintings are about 7,000 years old, give or take a thousand years, and show human figures performing what looks like a kind of Neolithic doggy paddle.
Confronted by the seeming inconsistency of swimmers in a desert landscape, Almásy hypothesized that the artists were realistically depicting their surroundings and that the climate had in fact been wetter back then.
It should be noted that researchers now question the original interpretation of "swimming."
"The 'swimmers' move towards 'headless beasts' in a straight line, more as if floating in air than swimming" says Andras Zboray, a Sahara explorer and rock art researcher. "They are clearly symbolic, as are the beasts, with an unknown meaning." "Odd Statement"
Still, the idea that water was much more abundant in this part of the Sahara several thousand years ago is supported by other prehistoric art in the region. Other caves and rocks show scenes of pastoral animals, which would have been unable to survive in the current dry conditions.
"Both [of the newly-discovered] lakes are located in areas with an exceptionally rich concentration of rock art sites in the immediate vicinity, and I suspect this cannot be a coincidence," Zboray says.
Full Story: http://www.livescience.com/49645-rock-art-ancient-earth-lakes.html
peace...
purported "swimmers" in the Cave of the Swimmers, Egypt.
________________________________________________
Giraffes and other animals not currently found in this part of
the desert, which suggests the area was wetter in the past.
http://i.livescience.com/images/i/000/073/696/iFF/cave-swimmers-egypt.jpg?1422640717http://i.livescience.com/images/i/000/073/698/i300/rock-art.jpg?1422640894
The Cave of the Swimmers has captivated imaginations ever since it was discovered by the Hungarian explorer László Almásy in 1933. The shallow cave's paintings are about 7,000 years old, give or take a thousand years, and show human figures performing what looks like a kind of Neolithic doggy paddle.
Confronted by the seeming inconsistency of swimmers in a desert landscape, Almásy hypothesized that the artists were realistically depicting their surroundings and that the climate had in fact been wetter back then.
It should be noted that researchers now question the original interpretation of "swimming."
"The 'swimmers' move towards 'headless beasts' in a straight line, more as if floating in air than swimming" says Andras Zboray, a Sahara explorer and rock art researcher. "They are clearly symbolic, as are the beasts, with an unknown meaning." "Odd Statement"
Still, the idea that water was much more abundant in this part of the Sahara several thousand years ago is supported by other prehistoric art in the region. Other caves and rocks show scenes of pastoral animals, which would have been unable to survive in the current dry conditions.
"Both [of the newly-discovered] lakes are located in areas with an exceptionally rich concentration of rock art sites in the immediate vicinity, and I suspect this cannot be a coincidence," Zboray says.
Full Story: http://www.livescience.com/49645-rock-art-ancient-earth-lakes.html
peace...