Abstract
AbstractWe conducted rock varnish measurements at four rock art sites in north‐western Saudi Arabia, including Kilwa and the Camel Site near Sakaka. We determined the areal densities of Mn and Fe in rock varnish that had accumulated on petroglyph surfaces since their creation, complemented by a detailed analysis of varnish samples. We inferred varnish accumulation rates by relating the Mn areal density on inscriptions to their ages estimated based on the type of script used. Applying these rates to the varnish densities on the rock art indicated that the art was produced during two distinct periods, corresponding to the Pre‐Pottery/Late Neolithic and the Bronze/Iron Age, respectively, with different artistic traditions, reflecting distinct socioeconomic and ecological conditions. Our dating approach, while admittedly burdened with substantial uncertainties, yields ages consistent with archaeological and historical evidence and it provides a unique quantitative tool to obtain at least rough ages for otherwise undatable rock art.
Highlights
Rock art, one of the most ancient forms of human artistic expression that has been preserved over the ages since its creation, can give us a window into the minds and lives of our human ancestors
The composition of the varnish is typical of type I rock varnish from arid regions, with Mn, Fe, Si and Al as the most abundant elements, present in the form of Mn-Fe oxyhydroxides, clay minerals and quartz grains (Dorn, 2007; Macholdt et al, 2017b; Potter & Rossman, 1977)
The average mass ratios of Mn to Fe measured by fs-LA-ICP-MS are 0.60 ± 0.38 at Camel Site (CS) and 0.82 ± 0.58 at CS and Kilwa, in good agreement with the average of 0.85 ± 0.62 obtained by the portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) measurements discussed below
Summary
One of the most ancient forms of human artistic expression that has been preserved over the ages since its creation, can give us a window into the minds and lives of our human ancestors. The oldest rock art dates from the Upper Palaeolithic, exemplified by the famous cave paintings in France and Spain, where minimum ages of 41 ka BP (before present) have been documented (Pike et al, 2012), as well as those in the Indonesian archipelago, with minimum ages of 44 ka (Aubert et al, 2019). These images were produced by applying pigments to rock surfaces, creating socalled pictographs, which can be dated either by radiocarbon measurements of the charcoal pigment used or by uranium-series dating of the speleothems that cover the images. Average annual precipitation is about 60 mm, with a winter rainy season peaking in January (www.weather-atlas.com/en/saudi-arabia/ sakaka-climate)
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