The Paleolithic era is the period of history commonly known as “the Stone Age.” It begins with the appearance of stone tools around 2.5 million years ago and ends approximately 12,000 years ago. It is quite late during the Paleolithic period—only around 40,000 years ago—that cave art first appears in the archaeological record. Found in various locations across the globe, sometimes deep in the inner chambers of caves and sometimes closer to their openings, this art reveals a modern human species that had evolved sufficiently to comprehend and appreciate symbolism.
Cave art is often divided into two categories: figurative (depicting animals and humans) and non-figurative (shapes that aren’t animals or humans). Within both of these categories, the prevailing hypothesis is that the purpose of much of the art was to serve the spiritual practices of early humans. This is particularly likely in cases in which the art has been found deep within distant caverns, in locations that took great effort to reach and that required long, dark treks that might have featured many perilous obstacles, from bears to floods to falling rocks.
Among the oldest cave paintings found to date are those in Indonesia in the Pettakere Cave. Here, paintings of hands, in the form of 26 handprints, date somewhere between 35,000 and 40,000 years ago. The handprints, which are the same color as the cave wall, are outlined in red at the cave’s entrance. It is believed that they were created by using the hand as a stencil and then spitting or blowing onto the wall a red dye obtained from certain foliage. Because the handprints appear at the entrance to the cave, it has been suggested that they were created to ward off evil spirits, preventing them from entering. Interestingly, the ritual of marking one’s home with a handprint persists among the present-day local population near Pettakere, which has used the cave and others around it for many years. Among contemporary locals, when a new home is erected, both the new owner of a home and a priest will place handprints created with rice flour onto the first new beam of the house.
In Spain’s Cantabria province in Europe, there are similar handprint paintings created by using the hand as a stencil and blowing pigment onto the cave wall. The oldest of these has been dated at more than 40,000 years old. The process used to make that determination is called “uranium-thorium dating,” in which a sample of calcite that has accumulated on the surface of the paint is removed and analyzed for trace amounts of uranium and thorium to determine the sample’s age. Scientists can conclude that whatever lies beneath must be at least as old as the calcite itself, but no upper bound can be placed on the age of the underlying paint. This implies that the paintings in Spain could actually be much more than 40,000 years old, potentially placing them very close to the time when modern humans, Homo sapiens, first appeared on the European continent.
Prior to that time, Neanderthals dominated Europe. Dating cave art back this far in history, therefore, could have major implications for our understanding of Neanderthals. If cave art were discovered that dates to the period and location in which the Neanderthals reigned, before the presence of modern humans, it would raise the question about who authored the paintings and whether they were indeed created by Homo sapiens at all.
Another important site is in the Chauvet cave in the Ardeche region of southern France. The paintings were found in this cave by a team of French cavers in 1994 and have been dated at around 30,000 years old. While the Chauvet paintings are not the earliest cave art discovered in Europe, they are the earliest figurative cave paintings yet discovered there. The Chauvet paintings are also notable for their breadth. They consist of hundreds of paintings of animals from over a dozen distinct species, including lions, panthers, and bears—predatory animals that do not frequently appear in other cave paintings from the Paleolithic era. Furthermore, deep inside the Chauvet cave are the cave’s only human figures, including an intriguing figure that is half man and half bison, and another that is female.
Now answer the questions.
| P1 | Paragraph 1 |
| S1 | The Paleolithic era is the period of history commonly known as “the Stone Age.” |
| 2 | It begins with the appearance of stone tools around 2.5 million years ago and ends approximately 12,000 years ago. |
| 3 | It is quite late during the Paleolithic period—only around 40,000 years ago—that cave art first appears in the archaeological record. |
| 4 | Found in various locations across the globe, sometimes deep in the inner chambers of caves and sometimes closer to their openings, this art reveals a modern human species that had evolved sufficiently to comprehend and appreciate symbolism. |
The word “reveals” in the passage is closest in meaning to
According to paragraph 1, the discovery of cave art first made 40,000 years ago was significant in that it established which of the following?
| P2 | Paragraph 2 |
| S1 | Cave art is often divided into two categories: figurative (depicting animals and humans) and non-figurative (shapes that aren’t animals or humans). |
| 2 | Within both of these categories, the prevailing hypothesis is that the purpose of much of the art was to serve the spiritual practices of early humans. |
| 3 | This is particularly likely in cases in which the art has been found deep within distant caverns, in locations that took great effort to reach and that required long, dark treks that might have featured many perilous obstacles, from bears to floods to falling rocks. |
The word “hypothesis” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Paragraph 2 indicates that in locations deep within caverns, cave art was
Which of the following can be inferred from information given in paragraph 2?
| P3 | Paragraph 3 |
| S1 | Among the oldest cave paintings found to date are those in Indonesia in the Pettakere Cave. |
| 2 | Here, paintings of hands, in the form of 26 handprints, date somewhere between 35,000 and 40,000 years ago. |
| 3 | The handprints, which are the same color as the cave wall, are outlined in red at the cave’s entrance. |
| 4 | It is believed that they were created by using the hand as a stencil and then spitting or blowing onto the wall a red dye obtained from certain foliage. |
| 5 | Because the handprints appear at the entrance to the cave, it has been suggested that they were created to ward off evil spirits, preventing them from entering. |
| 6 | Interestingly, the ritual of marking one’s home with a handprint persists among the present-day local population near Pettakere, which has used the cave and others around it for many years. |
| 7 | Among contemporary locals, when a new home is erected, both the new owner of a home and a priest will place handprints created with rice flour onto the first new beam of the house.
|
The word “obtained” in the passage is closest in meaning to
The word “persists” in the passage is closest in meaning to
|
|
Paragraph 4-5 |
| P4 S1 | In Spain’s Cantabria province in Europe, there are similar handprint paintings created by using the hand as a stencil and blowing pigment onto the cave wall. |
| 2 | The oldest of these has been dated at more than 40,000 years old. |
| 3 | The process used to make that determination is called “uranium-thorium dating,” in which a sample of calcite that has accumulated on the surface of the paint is removed and analyzed for trace amounts of uranium and thorium to determine the sample’s age. |
| 4 | Scientists can conclude that whatever lies beneath must be at least as old as the calcite itself, but no upper bound can be placed on the age of the underlying paint. |
| 5 | This implies that the paintings in Spain could actually be much more than 40,000 years old, potentially placing them very close to the time when modern humans, Homo sapiens, first appeared on the European continent. |
| P5 S1 | Prior to that time, Neanderthals dominated Europe. |
| 2 | Dating cave art back this far in history, therefore, could have major implications for our understanding of Neanderthals.
|
| 3 | If cave art were discovered that dates to the period and location in which the Neanderthals reigned, before the presence of modern humans, it would raise questions about who authored the paintings and whether they were indeed created by Homo sapiens at all.
|
The word “implies” in the passage is closest in meaning to
In paragraphs 4 and 5, what evidence supports the claim that dating European cave art to much earlier than 40,000 years ago raises the question of who created the art?
It can be inferred from paragraphs 4 and 5 that calcite that has accumulated on cave paintings must
| P6 | Paragraph 6 |
| S1 | Another important site is in the Chauvet cave in the Ardeche region of southern France. |
| 2 | The paintings were found in this cave by a team of French cavers in 1994 and have been dated at around 30,000 years old. |
| 3 | While the Chauvet paintings are not the earliest cave art discovered in Europe, they are the earliest figurative cave paintings yet discovered there. |
| 4 | The Chauvet paintings are also notable for their breadth. |
| 5 | They consist of hundreds of paintings of animals from over a dozen distinct species, including lions, panthers, and bears—predatory animals that do not frequently appear in other cave paintings from the Paleolithic era. |
| 6 | Furthermore, deep inside the Chauvet cave are the cave’s only human figures, including an intriguing figure that is half man and half bison, and another that is female. |
In paragraph 6, the author mentions the figurative paintings discovered in the Chauvet cave in order to
In paragraph 6, which of the following is NOT offered as a reason for which the Chauvet cave is regarded as significant?
| P1 | Paragraph 1 |
| S1 | The Paleolithic era is the period of history commonly known as “the Stone Age.” |
| 2 | A It begins with the appearance of stone tools around 2.5 million years ago and ends approximately 12,000 years ago. |
| 3 | B It is quite late during the Paleolithic period—only around 40,000 years ago—that cave art first appears in the archaeological record. |
| 4 | C Found in various locations across the globe, sometimes deep in the inner chambers of caves and sometimes closer to their openings, this art reveals a modern human species that had evolved sufficiently to comprehend and appreciate symbolism. |
| End | D |
Look at the part of the passage that is displayed above. The letters [A], [B], [C], and [D] indicate where the following sentence could be added.
This cave art from the Paleolithic era consists of symbolic representations created by humans.
Where would the sentence best fit?
An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
Paleolithic cave art reveals much about early humans.