Art for Cavemen’s Sake

Genesis 11:9
“Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.”

The concept of so-called cave art is not new. Some of the most notable cave galleries are in southern France. The peoples producing such art are often referred to as mesolithic. A recent discovery at Scarborough – a seaside resort in northern England – has shed some new light on the abilities of these people. Among the peat deposits, archaeologists have discovered what they think is a 10,000-year-old ochre crayon. It is possible that such a crayon might have been used for decorating their clothes of animal skins.

The soft ochre pebble has clearly been manually scraped and sharpened. Ochre gives a vibrant red color and is said, in a number of scientific articles, to have been used widely by hunter-gatherer societies because of its ability to be applied to animal skin. Researchers involved in studying the Scarborough find stated, “The latest discoveries helped further our understanding of Mesolithic life.” This is the sort of phrase frequently used in evolutionary articles when finds are difficult to assimilate to existing paradigms.

From a creationist perspective, we do not accept the 10,000 year date, though it seems likely that these people got to what is now England in ancient post-Flood times. We suggest they are the descendants of Japheth, migrating west through Europe, after the incident at Babel in Genesis 11. The confusion over how such supposedly primitive people could have such fine art makes sense to creationists. They had the civilization to produce fine art, but were not yet sufficiently established in the area for building more permanent technology.

 Prayer: We love to see the beauty of art well created, and we recognize that human art is but a small reflection of the beauty of Your creation, Lord. Amen.

Ref: University of York. “Archaeologists say they may have discovered one of the earliest examples of a ‘crayon’.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 26 January 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/01/180126095323.htm>. Image: Cave Painting, French Ministry of Culture, Public Domain.

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