Newly discovered rock art in Venezuela

Newly discovered rock art reveals unknown culture in Latin America

According to researchers, the rock art is around 4,000 years old and was located in the Canaima National Park, in Venezuela.

Archaeologists have discovered 20 rock art sites dating back thousands of years in Canaima National Park in southeastern Venezuela. According to them, the newly discovered paintings represent a new, previously unknown culture.

Newly discovered rock art in Venezuela (Image: José Miguel Pérez-Gómez/Simón Bolívar University)
Drawings had a ritual meaning
Some of the drawings, called “pictograms” by researchers, were done in red and depict lines of dots, star-shaped patterns and straight lines that connect to form a variety of figures.
There are also simple representations of leaves and people.
It is not clear why people at that time made the drawings.
But, according to the team, “these signs definitely had ritual significance.”
Archaeologists explain that the different representations may be related to birth, illness, renewal of nature or good hunting.
Rock art may be more than 4 thousand years old
Although the exact age of the rock art is not known, similar works located in Brazil have been dated to around 4,000 years ago. Despite this, researchers believe that the paintings discovered in Venezuela may be even older.

Canaima National Park encompasses forests and mountainous terrain, as well as Angel Falls, the highest waterfall on land in the world. For the team, this park may have been “ground zero” where this mysterious culture first developed before dispersing to more distant locations, such as the Amazon River, the Guianas and even southern Colombia. All of these regions present examples of rock art similar to those found in Venezuela.
Remains of pottery and stone tools were also found at the 20 sites. The materials may have been used by the same people who created the works. However, more research needs to be carried out to determine whether this option is truly viable. The information is from Live Science.
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