Is It Possible To Decipher Prehistoric Rock Art?

Рет қаралды 45,121

Жыл бұрын

Is it possible for us to understand the meaning behind prehistoric rock art? In this video, ancient historian Tristan explores Stone Age rock carvings in Scotland with leading experts, to try and answer that question. Why were spiral designs so important and do they show a connection between people living as far apart as Orkney and Portugal? And how was prehistoric rock art actually made?
With expert insight from Dr Hugo Anderson-Whymark and Dr Joana Valdez-Tullet, Tristan learns about the latest theories on prehistoric rock carving and cave paintings. He sees an impressive Stone Age design using cup and ring motifs in Scotland's mysterious Kilmartin Glen. And finally, Tristan has a go at creating some rock art himself.
Sign up to History Hit TV now and get 14 days free: access.historyhit.com/checkout
And remember, as KZfaq subscribers, you can sign up to History Hit TV today with code KZfaq and enjoy 50% off your first 3 months!
For more history content, subscribe to our History Hit newsletters: www.historyhit.com/sign-up-to...
#historyhit #stoneage #prehistoric

Пікірлер: 124

@merlinlucas8280 Жыл бұрын

I live in New Mexico, in the U.S.A. Spirals are found all over here in the deserts and mountains. They are sometimes pecked into rock or painted in cave walls and ceilings.

@vinniediesel1369 Күн бұрын

The entire West Coast and Nevada as well.

@cerealport2726 Жыл бұрын

I'm pretty sure Aboriginals from central or northern Australia have used, and do use spiral rock art to indicate water sources nearby.

@aaroncanniford9237 Жыл бұрын

Your theory is pretty good 👍

@lesliechristie3592 Жыл бұрын

Makes me wonder if it had to do with the old belief in dowsing!...

@sarahclaireclaire7586 Жыл бұрын

Yes...The Aboriginals of Australia used many messages in their rock art...water sources..food sources etc

@A__luna 6 ай бұрын

Галактические источники виртуального пространства, образованные сакральной архитектурой, влияющей на земную материю.. Предположительно местность находится в другом ключевом поясе или даёт возможность в него включиться.

@caroldixon3952 4 ай бұрын

In Northumberland (England) there are cup and ring marks also.

@jasoncornell1579 Жыл бұрын

Once photographed a local barrow entrance at night (kits coty house in Kent) it was covered in spirals like those that weren't visible to the naked eye

@43South Жыл бұрын

If you visit Newgrange, you walk across the bridge over the River Boyne at Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre. Look down into the river. You will see spirals in the water just like on the wall of the tomb.

@newmexicojoe5443 4 ай бұрын

Here in the southwest U.S., I have hiked over hundreds of thousands of acres of ranchlands over two decades to notice a pattern in the spirals. I have seen a great number of them having only two to five wraps, and would find a small amount of physical evidence of occupation. The more spirals, the more evidence. Usually along with the spirals would be images of goats or deer, wavy lines indicating water, even buffalo. It would seem logical then, that since the people were nomadic, the lines were left as records. Each complete revolution indicating the season spent there, or a complete cycle of year. Areas with only two or three wraps would have little in flint knappings and little else to show as evidence of habitation. While spirals with ten and more would have evidence scattered over a much larger area, and contain mono's and matate' (grinding stones), many more petroglyphs, worked points, and often extra construction using rock. In short then, the spirals indicated the abundance of the area found, and it's ability to provide resources.

@Tight4Skin 4 ай бұрын

They were partying! - Put your hands up in the air..put your hand up... in the air.....😂

@catebligh Жыл бұрын

I saw a map and compass. There’s so much information there, the direction you need to go, how many days walk to the next marker/settlement, nearby points of interest. Of course, that’s just in my mind and based on nothing 😆 Fascinating stuff! Love hearing all the theories.

@Allen-yv3ue 9 ай бұрын

I've been fascinated by spirals for years (live in Arizona) and have talked to some archeologist ( I think the best answer is) - it could mean deferent things to deferent people. One was a direction of travel, another was direction to water... and of course other meanings also. A friend showed me a large spiral on a flat rock and at the end the (spiral) line keep going making a map ( with another small spiral at that end) of the dry river bed. Down the drainage map... at the end was a spring ( year round water)

@01Lenda Ай бұрын

That is an excellent mind working, you have. I actually think the best idea I have heard on them in awhile.

@jackblackpowderprepper4940 Жыл бұрын

I live in Central Washington and am doing some amateur archeology on spirals, Effigies, stone totems and megaliths here. I have many short videos of them on my channel. One thing I noticed in your video is the spirals in my area run in the opposite direction.

@courtneyriley185 10 ай бұрын

Hey jack! I just checked out and sub to your channel! I love watching peoples homemade videos on archeology

@tanyafarris2295 4 ай бұрын

I'm from PNW and started My collection rock hounding couple years back . I'm amazed what you can find .so many tools ,rock art, effegys! Your pieces are amazing . Thank you for sharing .

@elleneilbracht5961 7 ай бұрын

Spirals are also found in Costa Rica in Central America,

@murkyseb Жыл бұрын

That was so interesting, can’t wait to see more

@finnishculturalchannel 4 ай бұрын

In Finland and surrounding region there are these spirals called 'Giants' Gardens', (video: "Ylikorvenkankaan jatulintarha, Miehikkälä", usually near water or ancient water areas. They are thought to be there for a rite to secure safe voyage for a person on water or by land. Spiral as a symbol would therefor be a good luck symbol for a journey or otherwise. Perhaps a road sign, but more likely a spiritual symbol on a gravestone or some other religious place; a religious symbol the same way as E.g. cross is in Christianity. Sometimes there are cup stones along side with the spiral symbols, which would support the religious theory. Holy Grail being a form of cup stone also.

@Naughts.and.Crosses Жыл бұрын

Dear Doodleologists, It's a navigation and timing system, DAH, with rock spiral having permanent information overlayed with charcoal dynamic information.

@yensid4294 Жыл бұрын

I have heard/read that spirals could be symbolic representations for water (holes) & that circles with a dot in the center may have represented the sun. I guess if certain larger rock art areas were a kind of abstract map of either the landscape or the night sky it would be difficult to determine after so much time. But it's an interesting idea.

@TheBeavis 8 ай бұрын

I don't know how else to say this, but we continue to utilize these to this day out East, throughout the Indian subcontinent. If you seek to find the meaning/ purpose through rigid methodologies of enquiry, it may be an exercise in futility for now. So, I will keep it short due to the subject matter, which may be too obscure without proper immersion into this 'way of life'. Notice the lines running through all of the spirals, which was overlooked. It is designed to cool and direct the flow of water in an efficient manner, by slowing it down through the spirals. Also notice it is carved into hard volcanic stones, which is still performed to this day in basalt/ volcanic rocks of very specific densities to let the water cool down a 'Linga' so as not to crack or overheat it. So what does it do, what is the purpose of it all? (I saved it for the end for a reason, as It is outside the purview of modern science) It serves multiple purposes, most significant of which is it acts as an energy amplifier (think a mini nuclear reactor, but for the conscious mind) for the collective community across multiple layers of consciousness. If i were the betting kind, I'd say there was likely a water source nearby during that period, and likely running waters around the entire boulder section

@deceptivepanther Жыл бұрын

Excellent.

@williamrobinson7435 Жыл бұрын

Nice one team! 🌟👍

@irishcherokee8884 Жыл бұрын

I live in mountains of the south west North America and there are similar glyphs here.

@ranjanjoshi3454 9 ай бұрын

Thanks

@bruceonlygoodvibes3639 Жыл бұрын

from what I've learned in this video there is no deciphering possible

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 3 ай бұрын

yes there is if you use the right science....kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pa6XZ5l8mtqbYWQ.html

@katherinecollins4685 Жыл бұрын

This was interesting

@OldOneTooth Жыл бұрын

Also for putting patterns on beaten felted fibre

@kyoatbites7865 3 ай бұрын

some islands off the west coast of Canada also have spirals Gabriola has some really big ones

@popetheoskeptik4057 10 ай бұрын

Very nice to see CnR motifs getting a bit of attention.

@lifeschool Жыл бұрын

I think many of the comments here are in the right area. As the circles were made outside on rocks, mostly pointing up towards the sky, I would say the ancients figured out we all come from the Sun (or God, the womb etc), and that we all leave the sun and return by the same way upon death. The spiral may be perhaps the path of life itself, or perhaps just an image of the Sun, like the South American cultures drew something that looked like a swastika. As this was made throughout Europe, I'd say this was some kind of Celtic Pagan shamanic trance ritual carving.

@shrinkU 7 ай бұрын

The spiral carvings in Newgrange/Boyne Valley were made about 3,500 BC and that predates the Celtic migration (Beaker Culture) by about 2000 years.

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 3 ай бұрын

so close....kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pa6XZ5l8mtqbYWQ.html

@yarlkymcfirblatherington9879 Ай бұрын

Simple cup marks are possibly celestial maps. They are made in a variety of sizes denoting the luminosity of each star. Some groups of cup marks clearly represent well known constellations, as can be seen clearly at Clava Cairns near Inverness.

@DownhillAllTheWay Жыл бұрын

Somebody's going to find that rock in 20 years time and think "Look at this! I believe it's 200,000 years old!"

@cosmicbuddhi8029 9 ай бұрын

Orkney to Portugal!!! They are World Wide. Many, many countries have these very same symbols. South America, Mexico, North America, China, Middle East, Asia, Russia, Africa, Indonesia, Australia......!!!!!!

@davidbamford4721 4 ай бұрын

I wonder if the concentric circles represented villages, and the whole being a map of how to navigate through the countryside? Larger and multiple concentric circles could represent a more established village. Hmmm.

@archangel_one 5 ай бұрын

I've translated it: You spin me right 'round, baby Right 'round like a record, baby Right 'round, 'round, 'round You spin me right 'round, baby Right 'round like a record, baby Whatever could it mean?😉

@ChrisfromGeorgia 2 ай бұрын

Word is the mushrooms were even more legendary back then.

@welshpete12 Жыл бұрын

I have no idea if this has any connection . But in some medieval cathedrals spirals are found on tiles on floors . About 40 feet of more in diameters. I'm told you are supposed to walk round them . But to what purpose I have no idea !

@kevanhubbard9673 Жыл бұрын

My speculation having experimented with occultism is that they are things seen during trance states which our ancient ancestors probably thought were spirit beings.I wouldn't like to say what they are possibly an artifact of the brain 🧠 to be totally materialistic about it but I like to think that there's more to our universe.

@luckyjames2530 5 ай бұрын

The ancient circles are simply to inform wanderers or anybody that within that distance that human lived around. If it's one, depending on size, it shows that it maybe a small group, if the circles were scattered, it means that there are numbers of settlement as stated on the rock face. These people doesn't have alphabets, they speak in signs and signals.

@stevenhines5550 3 ай бұрын

uh, no, that's not what Peratt's conclusive, undeniable survey found

@luckyjames2530 3 ай бұрын

@@stevenhines5550 The simple explanation is what I just identified, the further you go from the truth, the more confused you get by researches and results. Moreso, Peratt has nothing to do with this field of education, Peratt was a physicist.

@shy404usernotfound 5 күн бұрын

That actually makes a lot of sense

@derekh9246 3 ай бұрын

Nobody will ever know what the rock art means. Only the artists who made them know the exact meaning

@stevenhines5550 3 ай бұрын

it's well known; for some reason people pretend Peratt's survey never happened

@derekh9246 3 ай бұрын

Well known? Somebody has been lying to you 😂 the true meaning of the rock art you see today is long gone. We can only speculate..

@terryword7646 4 күн бұрын

Spirals are vibration portal doorways to different dimensions and times

@royramey5659 3 ай бұрын

These circles are here in the Americas too

@anncodec 9 ай бұрын

The spirals,I would like to think they saw the moon form,and thought it important enough to record,because we find them all over the world.

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 4 ай бұрын

The spirals are `Birkeland currents, similar to the northern lights but much bigger and for many many years....

@stevenhines5550 3 ай бұрын

thank you. finally someone who has seen Peratt's survey

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 3 ай бұрын

He gave up his day job to decipher the Petra's and has confirmed the electric universe in the process. His work should be a school curriculum@@stevenhines5550

@flyingardilla143 Жыл бұрын

There are loads of petroglyphs near where I live. I swear half of them are doodles or (prehistoric) kids messing around.

@jsullivan2112 Жыл бұрын

Those are some prehistoric kids with a lot of stamina and patience.

@flyingardilla143 Жыл бұрын

@@jsullivan2112 Yes, there are a lot that are barely recognizable as something intentional.

@jsullivan2112 Жыл бұрын

@@flyingardilla143 Can you paint or draw? I can't. My niece is really good at it though. She's half my age. What you say is plausible, but it's also just as likely that some people back then who liked rock carving just really sucked at it.

@Carburetors_and_calamaties Жыл бұрын

I believe they are more practical than anything. The rings would be a great place to smash berries in a mass amount, where the juice would flow down the channels and be collected for wine making.

@BonesyTucson Жыл бұрын

Sometimes it's just the ancient equivalent of LOL DONGS, I am convinced

@Dock777 Жыл бұрын

They have seen the portal open then shut then track the positions .

@JohnDelong-qm9iv 4 ай бұрын

soft sediment from global flood was easy to emboss.Petrification hardens over time

@declanreck1755 9 ай бұрын

The usage of Entheogens by Ancient Cultures expanded consciousness with further questions. This knowledge intertwined with Astronomical Motion gave birth to civilisation, science and spiritual practices; which later developed into Religions. The visionary aspects of Entheogens were represented by all these ancient cultures in Cave Paintings and Neolithic Motifs. With the advent of writing, society further developed by describing the visionary experiences in mythology

@adammillwardart7831 Жыл бұрын

Yes. It may be.

@garyrmckenzie3719 Жыл бұрын

Watched and liked your video. I am surprised really that cup and ring marked stones are still not able to be deciphered by anyone. This is absolutely untrue. Click the channel logo on this comment. Look at Loughcrew and you will see exactly how to interpret these markings. This is the only interpretation. Exact, calculated using stone circles, and wow pizzow, you have a people far more intelligent than recognised nowadays. I especially liked the explanation of how they were made. I would have attached a handle to the head. Gazza.

@twonumber22 Жыл бұрын

I suppose so since it just happened.

@pjschmid2251 Жыл бұрын

I always wonder when I see paleontologists re-creating prehistoric crafts or art if they destroy or somehow mark their creations so as to not potentially confuse scientists millennia down the line. Just think of how much they read into the things that they discover and how confusing it would be for someone who didn’t know the reasons this thing was created and potentially read things into it that were not intended at all.

@loujost Жыл бұрын

So this expert (0:47) who is trying to figure out the meaning of these marks is named "Whymark"??????

@elmersison8598 2 ай бұрын

etching tools

@RemusKingOfRome Жыл бұрын

"Galaxies" look up at night, see the nights sky, record what you see.

@crispynoodle7042 Жыл бұрын

This is very interesting, but the "clicking" to mimic a slideshow(?) is VERY annoying and unnecessary!!!!

@sarahmusk7793 Жыл бұрын

Please stop the clicking.

@Contact_Info Жыл бұрын

Ponder this, a 10 year old prehistoric boy was tracing water dropplets.. no hidden meaning

@Deeznutz002 6 ай бұрын

Many symbols might have been fossils they recreated geometrically.

@fred1690 3 ай бұрын

It’s the path of the sun over the plane, simple.

@matthewkirkey2716 Жыл бұрын

Just a guess..... They might have used hammer and mallet back then.... Just a thought 🤔

@shrinkU 7 ай бұрын

Iron Age started 1200BC. only softer metals available before that. So no metal hammers back then when these stone carvings were made

@stevenhines5550 3 ай бұрын

Anthony Peratt already deciphered it. Why pretend he didn't? What is at stake in pretending to preserve a mystery?

@billschlafly4107 Жыл бұрын

The narrator sounds like Nostalgia Nerd.

@lauraschiesl8845 10 ай бұрын

they were writing about the fibonnaci spiral

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 3 ай бұрын

nope but same science, electrical....kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pa6XZ5l8mtqbYWQ.html

@grahamhurlstone-jones5664 4 ай бұрын

The lost history channel does a comprehensive breakdown of all petroglyphs worldwide. They are all oriented in the same direction, they all witnessed the same events and then we ran to the caves, we did not come from them.......

@nibiruresearch 8 ай бұрын

These rock shelters or caves were a surviving place during the most dramatic event in the history of mankind. That is the crossing of planet 9 that occurs every few thousand years. That planet 9 is orbiting our sun in an eccentric orbit so it crosses close to our sun at a very high speed. Due to the gravitational force it causes a huge tidal wave, storms, rains, flooding and earthquakes in unprecedented amounts and a bombardment of fiery meteors. Only people who are in a shelter with a very strong roof, a mountain above your head will do, survive this disaster. Sometimes they may have left signs for the next generation. A spiral is the first sign of the approaching planet. A square cross is a closer planet and hands up means that they are frightened. That planet is sometimes presented as an agressive animal with big teeth. The event occurs in seven days. Another result of the cycle of disasters is a cycle of civilizations. They emerge and vanish according to a fixed schedule. This is ancient knowledge that is available for everyone who is searching for it but that is forgotten, neglected or denied by all scientists. To learn much more about planet 9, the recurring flood cycle and its timeline, the rebirth of civilizations and ancient high technology, read the e-book: "Planet 9 = Nibiru". This book answers many of your questions about ancient history. It can be read on any computer, tablet or smartphone. Search: planet 9 roest

@A__luna 6 ай бұрын

Что-то в этом есть. Во всяком случае используемое климатическое оружие, которым сейчас пользуются люди, может иметь связь с этими циклами и водой.

@FacesintheStone Жыл бұрын

Of course it’s possible, but not unless you are very passionate for it and you studying for several weeks. This is the dilemma that people who try to share, portable rock art are in. Everyone wants to just be able to look at it and see but it doesn’t work that way. It takes practice, learning the pattern-the language. Please advise!

@FacesintheStone Жыл бұрын

The only other place, I see the art is in the Edinburgh museum basement and in Turkey.

@FacesintheStone Жыл бұрын

Shared in a post.

@therealhellkitty5388 Жыл бұрын

It appears to be a map of the surrounding area… probably indicating the location of villages and burials. And yeah, lose the clicker it’s uber annoying.

@elvispresley5921 3 ай бұрын

In Ozzy Aboriginal spirals are a gathering/camping places , but it's original meaning.....Owl eyes.....Desolation. Today they are still everywhere with-in symbols n carvings etc. , still meaning the same thing. ......Desolation. imho.

@elvispresley5921 3 ай бұрын

What is the name of that place where 1%er's gather along with presidents and x-presidents with a massive owl statue???? Bohemian Grove? Interesting , isn't it.

@elvispresley5921 3 ай бұрын

The symbolic rituals they do is a-kin to masonic rituals.....i think

@mohammadwasim4089 9 ай бұрын

7 rings mean 7 universes

@shy404usernotfound 5 күн бұрын

How would they know about 7, when they didn't even know about the 1 they were in besides what they could visually see with just the naked eye in the night sky?

@TheMoneypresident Жыл бұрын

The spiral represents a village.

@piccalillipit9211 Жыл бұрын

*Is It Possible To Decipher Prehistoric Rock Art?* we don't know cos we didn't try... At least not in this video.

@OldOneTooth Жыл бұрын

Game board for marbles.

@paulmanuse2353 Жыл бұрын

The ignores of the people exclaiming knowledge of what they see, is childish. They don't now want there talking about. See Anthony Perratt here on youtube.

@apaul9776 Жыл бұрын

This is a disappointingly lightweight video which does not address the issue of deciphering, despite the clickbait title. Calling these markings 'rock art' is unhelpful and misleading. There is no obvious reason to classify the markings as art, unlike the much earlier ones in Lascaux, etc.

@Benson_aka_devils_advocate_88 Жыл бұрын

The first thing that came to mind when I read this comment was, "Tell me you didn't pay attention to the video without telling me you weren't paying attention..." They mention a few times that we will probably never know for sure what the rock carvings were for. But we have a few ideas based on what little info that can be gleaned from the surrounding landscape. Astronomical charts, message boards and road maps are all ideas that have been floated over the years. Or it may be something that we haven't come close to guessing. Regardless, they went over the possibilities of what the art could be before taking the time to demonstrate a few ways the art could have been made. And this does fall under the definition of art. Using human creativity they sculpted the rock into shapes and designs that can be appreciated by the people around them. The intricate shapes and repeating patterns are not found in nature and as such are highly likely to be decorative as well as practical. Or in other words that map on the wall probably has some flare added around the edges. Now, I could be completely wrong in my analysis and I'm okay with that. The only way we'll ever figure this stuff out, if it's even possible, is to discuss the the many theories laid forth. To dismiss someone because their ideas seem stupid in hindsight is no better than ridiculing someone just for having an idea that's different than your own. Just food for thought.

@apaul9776 Жыл бұрын

@@Benson_aka_devils_advocate_88 Thank you for taking the trouble to reply, although I disagree with what you say. There were indeed references to the possible role of the carvings in relation to the surrounding landscape which should be acknowledged. However, the biggest failing of the video to me remains the misclassification of the marks as art. Although ultimately this is a subjective matter, it is impossible to claim that they are in anyway comparable in subtlety, complexity or any other dimension with the cave art in Lascaux, etc. Therefore to use the same term to categorise them is just silly.

@Benson_aka_devils_advocate_88 Жыл бұрын

@@apaul9776 It very true that art is subjective. However, just because one thing is an intricate oil painting crafted by a late Renaissance master and the other is a paint by numbers, children's watercolor coloring book page that's been torn out and hung on the fridge, doesn't make one art and the other not art. Sure, what we just watched was a boulder in a field getting beat up by a couple Neanderthals. But how did we get the right to say that what those Neanderthals made didn't evoke a sense of pride and accomplishment. That it wasn't seen by the others as something to be looked at and admired. How do we know that the images of animals on a caves wall wasn't purely an instruction manual to teach the others what animals can be easily overcome, and to point to the exact spots that would ensure a fast kill. Which is important since they have yet to invent ambulances and hospitals. Under this theory, those magnificent and colorful images, something that through our eyes appears to be works of art they would look at for enjoyment, is nothing more than instructions us humans today toss out without having even looked through the pages. Playing devil's advocate on this one. On the one hand I see where you are coming and going with this. But on the other I know just how hard it can be to find meaning in ancient rock carvings. Where I live I can walk less than thirty minutes and be among what's left of some native American Indian ruins. I've stared at the concentric circles, vaguely humanoid figures and other seemingly geometric shapes for hours on end. I can't imagine someone taking so much time to carve them without putting some creativity into it. Without making it their own, just as religious scribes did during the middle ages. A purely utilitarian book, with strange motifs added by the authors for no other reason than, well, just because.

@lenabreijer1311 Жыл бұрын

@@apaul9776 but if the cave "art" is only magic to call animals, is it art? If it has a function is it art? If it is decorative is it art? Just because you don't recognise it doesn't mean it is not art. A lot of modern art is neither recognisable nor has any kind of meaning. A giant metal sphere is considered art. Random splashes of paint is considered art. One red stripe is considered art.

@delta3sigma 4 ай бұрын

Too much peyote.

@stevenhines5550 3 ай бұрын

yeah Peratt considered that too and discovered they would need to have had peyote in the Alps because the exact same petroglyphs - in the exact same orientations - were present there

@shy404usernotfound 5 күн бұрын

Peyote in Ireland or Scotland? Lol ok....

@ge2623 3 ай бұрын

Everything we don't understand from the ancient world always becomes "It's for religious purposes" or for the idiots: "It's aliens"

@JosefFerger 10 ай бұрын

Those silly click-click sound effects are annoying and totally unnecessary. It's a shame because the movie is otherwise interesting.

@inthemidwest3514 2 ай бұрын

sorry, not going to a white man to tell me what these prehistoric carvings mean. ill go to the shamans for that.

@shy404usernotfound 5 күн бұрын

Wtf do you think they were in Ireland & Scotland back then lol

@hiddenwoodsben 6 ай бұрын

it always weirds me out when i, a german, see someone from britain or the US wear german surplus, given that i own quite a bit of british and american surplus myself and usually due to it simply being better gear than what we have. 🤣 edit: ok, she may not be british herself, but at least she's in britain

@newvaguecity 9 ай бұрын

Any incision or 'writing' is a transmission, it's meant for the reader. Of course, this is a complex language, and of course, it served a purpose. The purpose being existential matters for the surival of the humankind.