27 Jan 2026

Humanity’s oldest known cave art

From Nights, 9:25 pm on 27 January 2026

When we think of the world’s oldest art, Europe usually comes to mind  those famous cave paintings in France and Spain.

But new discoveries in Indonesia are shaking that idea up and rewriting the story of early human creativity.

Mark Leishman speaks to Professor Renaud Joannes-Boyau, one of the researchers behind the discovery.

Faded hand shape in Indonesian cave may be world’s oldest rock art.

Faded hand shape in Indonesian cave may be world’s oldest rock art. Photo: Maxime Aubert/Griffith University via CNN Newsource