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In 1912, the Guardian reported on the discovery of Palaeolithic rocks on the walls of Bacon Hole, a cave near Mumbles in the south. Wales – just to ensure that the painting class will be abolished by 1928.
Horizontal lines of red pigment were later seen as a natural phenomenon as well The newspaper added a new word: “Then it was discovered that the red streaks … were actually a reddish mineral running through the stone and not ancient drawings.”
But the original report has now been proven correct by new research.
Archaeologists have used the latest scientific techniques to discover the stone art, discovering it was created 17,100 years ago – making it the oldest example in Britain and north-west Europe.
Dr George Nash, a British art historian who led the international team that carried out the new research, said: “This is the oldest art we have in Britain.
“It wasn’t considered rock art after 1928, and it wasn’t even mentioned, because in those days they didn’t have the scientific methods we have today.
“We have been using uranium-thorium dyes to make paint. We have a record of 17,100 years old, making it the oldest rock art in the British Isles. I was amazed that we were able to come across it and analyze the paint. This is an exciting rediscovery, very important to understanding what was going on in Wales in the past.”
The first discovery was made by professors William Sollas and Henri Breuil in 1912, when it was hailed as “the first example of ancient cave paintings found in England”. The full extent of the painting has not been understood, perhaps because, in 1894, a fisherman had painted another part of the room.
Archaeometric analysis has now revealed a mixture of calcite, associated with local limestone, and clay residues within the “pigment recipe”.
The academics concluded: “Based on all the observations in the field…
We agree with the original interpretation proposed by Breuil and Sollas in 1912… The paint was also used by the finger, research has shown.
Bacon Hole is located within the limestone cliffs of South Gower, overlooking the Bristol Channel. Although in the area of natural beauty, it is not protected as a “planned monument”, but archaeologists say that it should be one.
The cave is being looked after by the National Trust of Wales, which will announce the investigation this week.
Welsh-born Nash is an associate professor at the Geosciences Center of Coimbra University in Portugal and an honorary research fellow in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Liverpool.
He and international education experts have just published a scientific paper on their research in a journal Quaternary.
They write that, about 17,100 years ago, Wales was emerging from the coldest part of the Devensian glaciation: “During this period, the climate was gradually moving from an uninhabitable glacial zone to a treeless, sparsely vegetated glacial zone.
“The area now occupied by the Bristol Channel, where Bacon Hole is located on the northern shore, would probably have been a good feeding ground for migratory animals during the summer months.
The survey was conducted by First Arta group of scientists, as well as students from the universities of Southampton and Swansea, among others. This project was made possible thanks to the support of the National Trust and the Bradshaw Foundation.
Rare examples of Upper Palaeolithic rock art in Britain include that found by Nash in 2010 at Cathole Cave, Parkmill, about two and a half miles from Bacon Hole, which dates back to between 14,500 and 12,500 years ago.
