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Light in darkness: an experimental look at Paleolithic cave lighting - EurekAlert

Light in darkness: an experimental look at Paleolithic cave lighting - EurekAlert

Light in darkness: an experimental look at Paleolithic cave lighting - EurekAlert
Jun 16, 2021 1 min, 48 secs

A recreation of three common types of Paleolithic lighting systems (torches, grease lamps, and fireplaces) illuminates how Paleolithic cave dwellers might have traveled, lived, and created in the depths of their caves, according to a study published June 16, 2021 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Mª Ángeles Medina-Alcaide from the University of Cantabria, Spain, and colleagues.

Humans need light to access the deepest areas of caves--and these visits also depend on the type of light available, as light intensity and duration, area of illumination, and color temperature all determine how the cave environment can be used.

In this study, Medina-Alcaide and colleagues use archaeological evidence of lighting remains found across several Paleolithic caves featuring cave art in Southwest Europe to experimentally replicate the artificial lighting systems presumably used by the original human cave dwellers, allowing immediate empirical observations.

Their replicated lighting was based as much as possible on archaeological evidence found in similar Paleolithic caves, and included five replicated torches (made variably from ivy, juniper, oak, birch, and pine resins), two stone lamps using animal fat (bone marrow from cow and deer), and a small fireplace (oak and juniper wood).

Wooden torches made of multiple sticks worked best for exploring caves or crossing wide spaces, since they projected light in all directions (up to almost six meters in the experiments), were easy to transport, and didn't dazzle the torchbearer despite having a light intensity almost five times greater than a double-wicked grease lamp.

In contrast, grease lamps worked best for lighting small spaces over a long period--with a light intensity similar to a candle, they were able to light up to three meters (or more if larger or multiple wicks were added).

The authors add: "The artificial lighting was a crucial physical resource for expanding complex social and economic behavior in Paleolithic groups, especially for the development of the first palaeo-speleological explorations and for the origin of art in caves.".

(2021) The conquest of the dark spaces: An experimental approach to lighting systems in Paleolithic caves.

Copyright © 2021 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Copyright © 2021 by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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