Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Trump reiterates proposal for Russia and Ukraine to stop at current front line, negotiate later
Reuters: Trump says no discussion regarding Ukraine ceding Donbas to Russia
US Vice President JD Vance: There is currently no security infrastructure in place to ensure the disarmament of Hamas
Israeli occupation forces said that "ceasefire in Gaza begins to be re-implemented."
Israeli media: 'Israel' to halt entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza until further notice.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: One woman was killed and several children were injured as a result of Israeli bombing of displaced Gazans' tents in the Mawasi area of ​​Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip.
Al Mayadeen correspondent in Gaza: An Israeli airstrike targeted the eastern areas of Jabalia, north of the Gaza Strip.
Al Mayadeen correspondent in Gaza: An Israeli airstrike targeted Al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.
Al-Qassam Brigades: Communication has been severed with what our remaining fighters (if any are still alive) in Rafah, which is currently under occupation's control.
Al-Qassam Brigades says continues to abide by ceasefire, no knowledge of developments in Rafah.

Amateur archaeologist finds and decodes ice-age cave drawings in EU

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 6 Jan 2023 16:28
2 Min Read

Research indicates that the drawings found in the cave were not mere art but also a record of the timing of animals’ reproductive cycles, which Bacon calls the “proto-writing” system.

  • x
  • Writing system discovered by the archaeologist (TVP World)
    The writing system discovered by the archaeologist (TVP World)

An amateur archaeologist claimed to have discovered a primitive writing system dating back to the ice age, describing the 20,000-year-old markings as a form of a lunar calendar.

Ben Bacon's research indicates that the drawings found in the cave were not mere art but also a record of the timing of animals’ reproductive cycles, which Bacon calls the “proto-writing” system. He collaborated with a team consisting of two professors from Durham University and one from University College London, to publish the research in the Cambridge Archaeological Journal.

One of the professors, Prof Paul Pettitt, who is also an archaeologist at Durham University, expressed he was “glad he took it seriously” when he was contacted by the researcher: “The results show that ice age hunter-gatherers were the first to use a systemic calendar and marks to record information about major ecological events within that calendar,” 

Related News

Peru archaeologists unearth 3,000-year-old 'Priest of Pacopampa'

7,000-year-old road found underwater in Korcula Island, Croatia

Mating calendars

Other cave paintings of species such as fish and cattle that are now extinct such as aurochs and bison have been stumbled upon in Europe, alongside sequences of dots and other marks on them. These markings are thought by archaeologists to have meaning but so far have not been decoded or deciphered. 

But, Bacon took the challenge and set out to decode the markings by going through archives and cave art imagery at the British Library. He expressed that it was “surreal” to try and find out what people were talking about 20,000 years ago. 

The research team concluded that the marks associated with ice age animals were a record, by lunar month, of mating seasons. They deduced so by referring to birth cycles of similar animals today and believed that the “Y” sign meant “giving birth”.

Pettitt relayed: “We’re able to show that these people – who left a legacy of spectacular art in the caves of Lascaux (France) and Altamira (Spain) – also left a record of early timekeeping that would eventually become commonplace among our species.”

  • archaeology
  • primitive
  • Arts
  • UK
  • culture

Most Read

Iran strikes secret Israeli-US bunker under Tel Aviv high-rise

Tel Aviv high-rise struck by Iran hid Site 81, secret US-Israeli base

  • Politics
  • 14 Oct 2025
drop site

New report details extensive Israeli arson in Gaza after ceasefire

  • Politics
  • 13 Oct 2025
Illustration of fists breaking shackles, representing the liberation of Palestinian detainees from Israeli prisons. (Illustrated by: AL Mayadeen English/Batoul Chamas)

4 prominent Palestinian detainees to be freed: Who are they?

  • Palestine
  • 13 Oct 2025
2K Palestinian detainees freed, defy occupation with mass welcome

2K Palestinian detainees freed, defy occupation with mass welcome

  • Politics
  • 13 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
Russian banks begin accepting Iranian LCs to boost bilateral trade
Economy

Russian banks begin accepting Iranian LCs to boost bilateral trade

IOF admit to the killing of two soldiers in Gaza
Politics

Israeli occupation forces says two soldiers killed in southern Gaza

President Donald Trump attends a lunch with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Friday, Oct. 17, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Politics

Trump: No Gaza troops, no more arms to Ukraine, tariffs on China

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks in a meeting with ambassadors and representatives of foreign countries in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Politics

Iran-China-Russia alliance to counter EU snapback move: Tehran

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS