68,000-Year-Old Handprint Found in Indonesian Cave… "Early Human Evidence"
- Dogeon Lim
- Jan 25
- 2 min read
Jan 25, 2026
Dogeon Lim
Handprints inside a cave on the Indonesian island of Muna represent what researchers are calling the world's oldest known example of rock art, created at least 67,800 years ago.
According to analysis by Indonesian and Australian researchers on the islands of Sulawesi, the brown-colored prints were made by blowing pigment over hands placed against the cave walls, leaving an outline. Some of the fingertips have been modified to appear more pointed.
The prints have faded over time and are hardly visible on the cave wall; nevertheless, they symbolize an early achievement of human creativity as our species spread around the world after arising in Africa.
The researchers said the people who created this rock art were part of a population that came from mainland Asia to the islands of Indonesia, and later may have continued on to Australia.
It is not clear yet who made the paintings. There is no clear eivdence yet. They could be from an ancient human group called Denisovans, who lived in the area and may have interacted with Homo sapiens before they eventually became extinct. If not, they might be modern humans who ventured away from Africa and could have wandered through the Middle East and Australia around this time.
The important details of the cave art, such as the intentionally modified fingertips, indicate that it is a human hand.
There is a high possibility that more art can be found on other islands that could be even older than these prints. Studying this would help scientists learn how these artistic traditions spread across the world and how they are embedded in the very foundations of human history.
