The artifact, depicting a songbird on a pedestal, appears to be about 13,500 years old.
Francesco D'Errico and Luc DoyonAn ancient bird statuette recovered from a refuse heap is the oldest known figurine discovered yet inScientists unearthed the miniature carving at the site ofin China, where previous excavations uncovered 11 layers each of distinct ages, ranging from 120,000 years ago to the Bronze Age. They discovered the artifact in a refuse heap left over from well diggers who removed most of the fifth layer in 1958.
The figurine depicts a songbird on a rectangular pedestal. The artist deliberately added weight to the sculpture by oversizing the tail to prevent the bird from falling forward, d'Errico said."The artist knew that making a sculpture is a matter of finding the right balance."A small bird carving is the oldest piece of East Asian three-dimensional art ever discovered.
Radiocarbon dating of unearthed burned animal remains from the fifth layer, including a bone fragment with gouging marks also seen on the statuette, suggested the artifact is about 13,500 years old, meaning it originated during the Paleolithic, or Old Stone Age, when the first human art appeared. Until now, the oldest known Chinese figurine was a jade songbird about 5,000 years old found near Beijing.
Markings on the figurine suggest it was carried around for some time in a leather bag, the researchers said."Was it a toy? A gaming piece? A religious effigy? Is it art for art's sake? Something deeper? It’s fascinating to speculate," said Adam Brumm, an archaeologist at Griffith University in Australia, who did not take part in this research.
日本 最新ニュース, 日本 見出し
Similar News:他のニュース ソースから収集した、これに似たニュース記事を読むこともできます。
China central bank bank approves American Express for bank card clearance businessChina's central bank said on Saturday it has given American Express approval to set up a bank card clearance business in the country.
続きを読む »
American Express Gets Nod to Start Operating Card Network in ChinaChina’s central bank gave American Express the green light to start operating a card-clearing network that will process transactions in yuan, giving the U.S. card company greater access to the country’s spenders.
続きを読む »
China Claims To Be Victim, Wants Twitter To Delete AttackersThe Chinese government says that it has been the victim of disinformation campaigns on Twitter. It called on the social media platform to delete accounts that have been attacking the country over t…
続きを読む »
18 dead, 189 hurt as tanker truck explodes on China highwayBEIJING (AP) — A tanker truck exploded on a highway in southeastern China on Saturday, killing 18 people and injuring at least 189 others, authorities said. \n The explosion caused...
続きを読む »
Gas tanker explosion in China kills 19At least 19 people were killed and 172 injured when a gas tanker exploded on a Chinese highway, state-run news agency Xinhua says
続きを読む »