Sistine Chapel of the Ancients: An Amazing Rock Art in the Amazon

A team of British and Colombian archaeologists did a thrilling expedition. They did it in the Amazon. In that expedition, they discovered a new prehistoric painting.

The name of the painting is the Sistine Chapel of the Ancients. The surprising thing is that the prehistoric painting was a long stone wall. It is eight miles long stone wall.

Mysterious Sistine Chapel of the Ancients
Iriarte et al.CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

On this big canvas, you will see the stories of nature and human connections. It is visible in this place deep in the amazon in skillful rhythm.

The archaeologists named it the Sistine Chapel of the Ancients. This primitive work of art resembles the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican Palace. It has an archaeological significance, without any doubt.

Archaeologists discovered it in Colombian parts of the amazon jungle. There are many things to know and see in this place in the amazon rainforest.

Sistine Chapel of the Ancients

Archaeologists discovered thousands of handprints and pictures of extinct Ice Age animals here. They also found drawings of various geometric shapes in Colombian rock carvings.

Although discovered in 2019, Authority kept this information secret for a long time. According to many sources, archaeologists discovered it in 2017.

The discovery team said they kept this secret for a documentary and smooth research. But, this campaign was not easy at all. It is an astonishing Prehistoric Art, without any doubt.

First, any expedition to a deep forest like the Amazon is challenging. Second, any activity in the war-torn region has to face many diplomatic hurdles.

So even after trying for a long time, it was not easy to get permission. In 2016, the conflicting government and the guerrillas signed a peace agreement.

It creates an opportunity for permission. This historic expedition started in the depths of the Amazon in 2016. But, the locals were aware of these rock paintings for many years.

They have shown the way to the adventurers and brought them here. The European Research Council funded the expedition. A professor of archeology named José Iriarte led this expedition.

Iriarte’s team discovered the paintings in 2019. They found it in the Serranía de La Lindosa region of Colombia. Primitive man painted these prehistoric paintings with the help of red clay.

They painted several of these paintings on long walls in a very high position. It is impossible to draw them while standing on the ground. They had to use drones to take pictures.

Then the question arose, how primitive man draw at such a height? The answer can be available in the paintings, said Professor Iriarte. Some paintings depict high scaffolding made of wood.

Iriarte said that it was with the help of these scaffoldings that they climbed so high. But no exact explanation is not available for the modern-day bungee jumping scene.

These prehistoric paintings have many pictures of different animals. These animals roamed the earth during the ice age. They are mastodon, monster sloth, tapir, crocodile, bat, deer, monkey, snake, and rabbit.

If you look at the pictures for a while, their subtlety will catch your eye. An image of a prehistoric horse is so perfect that its fur and hair are visible.

The difference between the horse of the present time and that horse is different. Judging by the images of these animals, researchers estimate that the rock is about 11,000 to 13,000 years old.

There are people dancing hand in hand, wearing masks like bird lips in the paintings. Moreover, there is a picture of an animal sacrificed in a circle around a group.

Presumably, the depiction of the scene worshiping the animal in the center. By examining these primitive stone carvings, we can get a fair idea of ​​the social system. We can also get an idea about the environment of that time.

Colombian paintings also convey some of these messages. Researchers became astonished that the current Amazon does not have much in common. The nature of this painting is unique.

rock art
Iriarte et al.CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A grassland is visible in the picture. The dense forests we see in the Amazon today are not always rainforests. Many of its territories were once vast grasslands.

Human society at that time was hunting and gathering food. The pictures show people eating the fruit of the tree. They also ate fish and crocodiles from the river.

Conclusion

There is no limit to our curiosity about the early history of this place. The rock carvings discovery is a unique archaeological document.

The Sistine Chapel of the Ancients is a majestic Prehistoric Art. Already researching part of this painting has revealed some interesting facts.

These facts can change our general perception of Amazon. Research is still ongoing on this place. Many people have the curiosity to see this place.

Lac de Gafsa: A Mysterious Lake in Tunisian Desert

Scroll to Top