(Guided Notes) Cave Art

What do cave paintings tell us about the people of the Paleolithic Age?

• That Paleolithic people had a written language similar to ours.

• That Paleolithic people were not intelligent enough to record their history.

• That Paleolithic people used art as a form of expression to record events and communicate.

Why were archaeologists initially skeptical about the authenticity of the ancient cave paintings?

• They were too large to have been created by early humans.

• They did not show any recognizable animals or events.

• They were too advanced and complex for the time period.

Which of the following was NOT a subject commonly found in Paleolithic cave art?

• Woolly mammoths

• Geometric patterns

• Scenes of men hunting

• Landscapes and scenery

What is the significance of the handprints found in caves?

• They prove that people actually lived during the Paleolithic Age.

• They were used to help people climb up cave walls.

• They were a way for archaeologists to identify individual artists.

What makes the cave paintings at Lascaux Cave in France particularly significant?

• They are the only cave paintings that have been discovered in the world.

• They provide a record of animals that are now extinct.

• They contain the first written language ever discovered.

What do the cave paintings in Australia’s Kakadu National Park teach us about the Aborigines?

• They were used to document the hunting of extinct animals.

• They show how to make more advanced tools and inventions.

• They reveal details about their daily life and spiritual beliefs.

What did the cave paintings in the Sahara show?

• That the Sahara was once a green area filled with plants and animals.

• That early humans traveled to the Sahara to hunt animals.

• That the Sahara was where farming was first invented.

Why is it possible that Paleolithic art was created in places other than caves?

• The art in caves was not as detailed as it was outside.

• The paintings outside the caves would have been destroyed or faded over time.

• The outside paintings were used to mark hunting territories.