Format: Paper presentations with discussion
Convenors:
Prof. Danae Fiore, CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina), Universidad de Buenos Aires, danae_fiore@yahoo.es
Dr Neemias Santos da Rosa, University of Bordeaux, France; Rock Art Research Institute, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, neemias.sdarosa@gmail.com
Archaeologists have significantly contributed to the material turn, an ontological, theoretical, and methodological perspective that has transformed the archaeology of art. Various visual arts found in the archaeological record—such as rock art, geoglyphs, portable art, body ornaments, sculptures, and friezes—are now studied through materiality, expanding traditional stylistic and symbolic approaches.
Consequently, the archaeology of art has witnessed significant advances in archaeometric techniques to characterise raw materials, technical and taphonomic processes, date image-objects, and address recording and conservation issues. Experimental archaeology has also been employed to reconstruct early, often unknown, technologies through replication, while systematic experimental protocols have generated independent diagnostic criteria for archaeometric analyses.
However, these detailed methodological findings are often examined empirically, limiting their interpretative potential. The theoretical framework of art’s materiality overcomes these limitations by treating images as material artefacts, revealing aspects previously overlooked, including:
a) Economic factors – work processes, division of labour, and investment required for production;
b) Technological factors – techniques developed/adapted for image-making, their techno-visual affordances (what visual features each technique enabled and how they shaped perception) and performative affordances (what actions they facilitated during production and interaction);
c) Cognitive factors – practical, rational, perceptual, and affective knowledge involved in creating, manipulating, and interpreting image-artefacts.
Thus, the material turn broadens the interpretation of experimental and archaeometric data, moving beyond empiricism to more contextualised understandings of how and why art-objects were created and engaged with in the past, as well as how we interact with them today. A global congress such as WAC is an ideal venue to explore how materiality, agency, technology, perception, cognition, and the economy of art enhance archaeometric and experimental interpretations across diverse regions, timeframes, and contexts.
Papers:
Bone Black ‘Bim’ – Complex Paint Recipes in the Kunwarddebim at Madjedbebe, The Alligator Rivers Region, Northern Australia
Jillian Huntley, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Queensland, Australia
Brandi L. MacDonald, Archaeometry Laboratory, University of Missouri Research Reactor, USA
May Nango, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, Northern Territory, Australia
Samantha Mahan, Archaeometry Laboratory, University of Missouri Research Reactor, USA
Djaykuk Djandomerr, Clarry Nadjamerrek and Anne Murrimal, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, Northern Territory, Australia
Lynley A. Wallis, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research and Wallis Heritage Consulting, Queensland, Australia
The Mirarr people’s cultural traditions include a 60,000 year history of pigment gathering and use, evidenced by ground ochres recovered from dated archaeological deposits at Madjedbebe rockshelter. Housing the earliest evidence for human occupation in Australia, Madjedbebe lies within the former Jabiluka Mineral Lease, surrounded by the World Heritage listed Kakadu National Park. Mirarr’s Kunwarddebim (rock art, or ‘bim’) records long associations with their kunred (Country/clan estate). To further document such relationships we analysed unusually saturated black bim at Madjedbebe using portable spectrographic techniques (pRaman, pFTIR and pXRF). Here we describe complex paint recipes that are a mix of bone black, magnetite rich minerals and organic binders. We compared paint composition of a ~13,000 year-old brown/black ground ochre nodule recovered from the deposits, ochre sources we have recorded elsewhere on kunred, as well as a similarly saturated black kangaroo motif from the Spitting Emu Site Complex on Djidbidjidbi (Mt Brockman). Of the five motifs investigated, only two contained burned bone, while heat-treated and other mineral components did not match pigments from the deposits. The complex and varied paints of Mirarr’s bim show recipes were concerned with more than merely functional/utilitarian paint properties.
Characterising Formation Pathways of Oxalate Accretions: Implications for Radiocarbon Dating Rock Art
Courtney Webster and Jillian Huntley, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Australia
Geraldine Jacobsen, Australia’s Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, Australia
Balnggarrawarra Aboriginal Corporation, Queensland, Australia
Buubu Gujin Aboriginal Corporation, Queensland, Australia
Laura Rangers, Queensland, Australia
Maxime Aubert, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Australia
Noelene Cole, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia
Lynley A. Wallis, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research and Wallis Heritage Consulting, Queensland, Australia
Rock art has been associated with oxalate mineral accretions in rockshelters globally, and, while these accretions have often been attributed to geological weathering or biological processes, the precise formation mechanism remains largely unknown. Despite ambiguity surrounding their origin, oxalate accretions containing carbon have been radiocarbon dated and used to establish chronological sequences associated with rock art. However, the uncertainty of the carbon source raises concerns about the accuracy of such dating. This research, part of the Agayrr Bamangay Milbi (ABM) project, investigates oxalate mineral accretions from rockshelters in southeast Cape York Peninsula, Australia, with the goal of characterising the formation pathways of these accretions and evaluating their suitability for radiocarbon dating.
Characterisation and Analysis of Djibidjidbi Rock Art in Mirarr Country, The Alligator Rivers Region, Northern Australia
Brandi L. MacDonald, Archaeometry Laboratory, University of Missouri Research Reactor, USA
Jillian Huntley, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Australia
May Nango, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, Northern Territory, Australia
Clarry Nadjamerrek, Craig Djandomerr and Djaykuk Djandomerr, Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation, Northern Territory, Australia
Lynley A. Wallis, Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research and Wallis Heritage Consulting, Queensland, Australia
Rock paintings continue to be a significant aspect of living cultural traditions among members of the Mirarr community. For millennia, pictographs have been created at sacred sites as a social means of storytelling, and documenting events, people, and places. The ongoing use of rock art localities across Djidbidjidbi (Mt Brockman) through ceremonial visitation and repainting events has created a series of visually stunning polychrome panels with a high degree of complexity and diversity in terms of their paint compositions. Here, we present the preliminary results of non-destructive characterisation of polychrome motifs at multiple rock art sites across Djidbidjidbi using field-portable instrumentation (X-ray fluorescence and Raman spectroscopy). Our results show the use of a mixture of various inorganic earth mineral pigments, as well as the presence of organic components (beeswax). This study illustrates crucial aspects of community-centred research, as well as the value of non-destructive characterisation of cultural heritage sites.
Experimental Notes on the Use of Fire for Paint Production
Ariel David Frank, La Plata National University and CONICET, Argentina
Felicitas Reyes García, La Plata National University, Argentina
The Central Plateau of Santa Cruz (Patagonia, Argentina) has a rich variety of rock paintings. These were done with different colours, such as red, white, black, yellow and orange. Microstratigraphic studies, coupled with chemical analyses, have informed us of the variety of inorganic raw materials used to produce paints, including hematite, gypsum, goethite and manganese oxide, among others. There are possible traces of the use of fire in this process: the identification of burnt sienna and anhydrite hints towards the heat treatment of ochres and gypsum, respectively. Furthermore, charcoal was identified in black and red paintings.
In this presentation we will focus on analysing the possible reasons for the presence of charcoal in red paints. As part of an ongoing experimental project, we will present the preliminary results of experiments on two alternative processes which could explain it: the use of charcoal for the achievement of the desired colour of the paint and the unintentional incorporation of charcoal particles during heat treatment of red or yellow pigments in open fires. Based on the results, we will discuss the plausibility of both alternatives as well as the technical implications of both processes regarding the interaction between paint production and pyrotechnology.
New Data on Altxerri B: An Interdisciplinary Analysis of the Archaeological Deposit at the Foot of Palaeolithic Art (Basque Country)
Ma Ángeles Medina-Alcaide, University of Cordoba, Spain
Martín Arriolabengoa, University of the Basque Country, Spain
Catherine Ferrier, University of Bordeaux, France
Diego Garate, University of Catabrian, Spain
Iñaki Intxaurbe, University of the Basque Country, Spain; University of Bordeaux, France
Antonio López, Labcertis company
Joseba Rios-Garaizar, Diputación Foral de Bizkaia, Basque Country, Spain
Eva Rodríguez-Castro and Antonio J. Romero-Alonso, University of Cordoba, Spain
Neemías Santos da Rosa, University of Bordeaux, France
In 2021 we began a re-examination of Altxerri cave with the main objective of obtaining a comprehensive understanding of Prehistoric Subterranean Activity. Our focus extends beyond the well-known graphic manifestations on its walls (Zone A, attributed to the Magdalenian period; Zone B, to the Aurignacian) to analyse evidence of human incursions at ground level.
At the foot of the main Palaeolithic Art panel in Zone B—featuring large-scale zoomorphic figures, including an enormous bison and a feline marked with red paint—we have identified a substantial and diverse archaeological record. This provides valuable insights into the activities that took place in this interior space of the cave, likely associated with the creation of one of the oldest figurative ensembles in Europe. We will introduce the initial discoveries from interdisciplinary study of this archaeological deposit. These include new radiocarbon dating, analyses of potential pigments, micromorphological assessments, examinations of combustion and lighting residues, as well as the identification of lithic elements and knapping remains. These new data are crucial for refining the chronology of the Palaeolithic art present in this area of the cave. Furthermore, this study holds significant methodological and interpretative value in exploring the relationship between Palaeolithic Art and its immediate archaeological context.
On Grinding and Rock Painting: An Experimental Method to Study Pigment Grinding Through Particle Size Analysis in Micro-samples
Matías Landino, Centro de Estudios sobre Patrimonios y Ambiente, Escuela de Arte y Patrimonio y Escuela de Hábitat y Sostenibilidad, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina
Lucas Gheco, Centro de Estudios sobre Patrimonios y Ambiente, Escuela de Arte y Patrimonio y Escuela de Hábitat y Sostenibilidad, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina; Instituto Regional de Estudios Socioculturales, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad Nacional de Catamarca, S.F.V. Catamarca, Argentina
Eugenia Ahets Etcheberry, Centro de Estudios sobre Patrimonios y Ambiente, Escuela de Arte y Patrimonio y Escuela de Hábitat y Sostenibilidad, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina
Marcos Tascon, Centro de Estudios sobre Patrimonios y Ambiente, Escuela de Arte y Patrimonio y Escuela de Hábitat y Sostenibilidad, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina
Fernando Marte, Centro de Estudios sobre Patrimonios y Ambiente, Escuela de Arte y Patrimonio y Escuela de Hábitat y Sostenibilidad, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad Nacional de San Martin, Argentina
The study of the materiality of rock art provides a robust theoretical framework for addressing archaeological questions related to the production of ancient rock paintings. Although widely investigated, research has primarily focused on aspects such as the archaeometric characterisation of raw materials and the technical affordances of painting techniques. Different lines of evidence underscore the significance of grinding in the preparation of pigments, however the archaeological identification of this practice and its effects on pigmentary mixtures have received less attention, since it still represents a methodological challenge. In this presentation we introduce an innovative approach to this topic by combining experimental archaeology and optical microscopic analysis. We focus on the experimental study of ground charcoal using a hand mortar and develop a model that relates the pigments’ particle area to grinding time. This model was applied to a case study from rock paintings of Oyola’s site, in northwestern Argentina, where charcoal served as the main black pigment. The results obtained by studying several micro-samples enable us to distinguish between varying levels of grinding in macroscopically similar rock paintings from this archaeological site. While this research is based on a local case, we contend its broader applicability to other similar contexts.
Joining the Dots: A Techno-visual Approach to the Earliest Painted Portable Art in Tierra del Fuego and its Implications for the Identification of a Deep-time Artistic Tradition
Danae Fiore, CONICET, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Francesco d’Errico, PACEA, University of Bordeaux, CNRS/Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour, University of Berge
Maite Maguregui, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)
Neemias Santos da Rosa, University of Bordeaux, France; Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, Rock Art Research Institute, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
A. Francisco J. Zangrando, CONICET – CADIC, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Luis A. Orquera, Asociación de Investigaciones Antropológicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Alain Queffelec, UMR5199 PACEA – CNRS, University of Bordeaux, Ministry of Culture, France
Olivia Gómez Laserna, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain
Lucas Gheco, CONICET – IRES, Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina
Agustín Acevedo, CONICET – Instituto de Evolución, Ecología Histórica y Ambiente (IDEVEA), Argentina
Luc Doyon, PACEA, University of Bordeaux CNRS, France
Eugenia Ahets Etcheberry, CONICET, Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina
Matías Landino, CONICET, Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina
Ana Butto, CONICET – Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC), Argentina
This paper presents the first techno-visual analyses of the earliest painted portable art from Southern Tierra del Fuego (Southern South America). The artefact is a maritime mammal bone splinter painted with five red dots in a row; it was found in site Tunel I, in a layer dated ca. 6500-6700 cal. BP. The deep significance of this finding is related to the following facts: a) it is the earliest and southernmost evidence of decorative painting created by Indigenous societies in the world; b) it provides a deep-time date for the onset of a visual culture found in other art forms developed in the region (body painting and wooden artefact painted decorations created by the Yagan society in historical times; painted rock art) all of which included motifs made with rows of dots. Differences with deep-time engraved portable art on bone artefacts are also presented, and related to the disparate techno-visual affordances offered by painting vs engraving techniques. Results from microscopic observations, geometric morphometrics and archaeometric analyses –XRF, SEM-EDS, µ-Raman, µ-EDXRF imaging and 3D-CM– shed light on the technical choices and practices underlying the production of this painted artefact and contribute to the knowledge construction of a deep-time Fuegian artistic tradition.
Modelling the Taphonomic Effects of Wind Erosion and Marine Aerosol Degradation on Painted Images Through Accelerated Ageing Experiments: Implications for the Origins of Rock Art and the Evolution of Human Symbolic Behaviour
Neemias Santos da Rosa, UMR 5199 PACEA, University of Bordeaux – CNRS – Ministry of Culture, France; Marie Curie Postdoctoral Fellow, Rock Art Research Institute, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Francesco d’Errico, UMR 5199 PACEA, University of Bordeaux – CNRS – Ministry of Culture, France; Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), University of Bergen, Norway
Maite Maguregui, Dept of Analytical Chemistry, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain
Danae Fiore, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina; University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
Olivia Gómez Laserna and Martina Romani, Dept of Analytical Chemistry, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain
Alain Queffelec, MR 5199 PACEA, University of Bordeaux – CNRS – Ministry of Culture, France
Lloyd Courtenay, MR 5199 PACEA, University of Bordeaux – CNRS – Ministry of Culture, France; Dept d’Història i Història de l’Art, Rovira i Virgili University (URV), Spain
Francesco Caruso, Dept of Analytical Chemistry, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain
Florian Wiesinger, Institute of Solar Research, German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Germany
Karen van Niekerk, Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), University of Bergen, Norway; School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Christopher Henshilwood, Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), University of Bergen, Norway; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
This paper presents unprecedented experimental research on the impact of wind erosion and marine aerosol degradation on 312 painted samples produced with eight different pictorial recipes. Using sandstorm and climatic chambers, we replicated thirteen degradation scenarios to which rock art paintings created in coastal environments could be exposed. These simulations ranged from the effects of mild and moderate winds to the impacts of strong sandstorms and a hurricane on images with and without exposure to sea-derived salts. The degradation processes observed in the experiments were recorded through 3D digital microscopy, white-light confocal profilometry, μ-EDXRF mapping, Raman spectroscopy, and hyperspectral imaging. Subsequently, the data collected were modelled using statistical methods to determine the specific deterioration patterns and survival thresholds of each pictorial recipe under varying environmental and taphonomic conditions. Given that the findings of this study have direct implications for current debates on the origins of rock art and the emergence of symbolic behaviour in the Homo genus, we discuss whether the apparent absence of rock art paintings in Blombos Cave and other Middle Stone Age sites of southern Africa is more likely the product of cultural choices or the result of a taphonomic bias introduced by time-dependent destructive processes.
Living and Painting: First Chemical Analysis of Coloured Artefacts from Patagonian Hunter Gatherers’ Domestic Stratigraphic Contexts (SW Chubut, Argentine Patagonia)
Lucía A. Gutiérrez, Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (UBA-FFyL); Instituto Nacional de Antropología y Pensamiento Latinoamericano (INAPL)
Adelphine Bonneau, Heritage and Archaeosciences Laboratory, Dept of Chemistry and Dept of History, Université de Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
María Ana Castro, Instituto de Química, Física de los Materiales, Medio Ambiente y Energía (INQUIMAE), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
Mailín Rocío Campos, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas (IMHICIHU); Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (UBA-FFyL)
Analía Castro Esnal, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras (UBA-FFyL); Instituto Nacional de Antropología y Pensamiento Latinoamericano (INAPL)
Casa de Piedra de Roselló (SW Chubut, Argentine Patagonia) is an archaeological site consisting of one main cave and two smaller shelters, which provide evidence of human occupation in the area since 9000 cal. years BP. In addition to a notable presence of rock paintings, excavations in both the cave and one of the shelters have yielded several lithic and bone artefacts, some of which exhibit predominantly red paint stains. These findings have prompted discussions on the use and management of colours in the area since the Early Holocene and raised questions about whether these stained artefacts were associated with rock paintings production, or other activities.
To address these issues, this presentation proposes a multi-analytical approach combining Raman micro-spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared micro-spectroscopy (FTIR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) to characterise and compare the paint found on both artefacts from stratigraphy and rock art. We aim to contribute to broader discussions on colour management and the complexity of paint production, particularly in Patagonian hunter gatherer contexts.
Wooden Materiality and Tree Agency in the Gunadule World: Rethinking Archaeobotanical Approaches through Ethnographic Objects
Nuria Romero Vidal, Institute of Heritage Sciences (INCIPIT), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Edificio Fontán, Bloque 4, Monte Gaiás, s/n. 15707 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Wood is part of what is often considered an ephemeral materiality, making its preservation in the archaeological record rare. While advances in archaeobotany have enhanced our ability to identify raw materials and reconstruct technological processes, addressing symbolic and cultural dimensions—such as the agency of both objects and plants—remains a challenge. In this context, ethnographic objects, often overlooked in archaeological research, provide a valuable means to expand our interpretations of wooden material culture. Their better preservation not only allows us to study the materials themselves but also helps safeguard the ephemeral knowledge associated with plant-based crafts.
Through the study of a collection of wooden carvings from Gunayala (Panama), housed in various ethnographic museums, this research explores their materiality and the broader plant-human interactions they embody. The case of nudsugana ritual carvings among the Guna people highlights how wooden objects are more than passive artifacts; they participate in complex ecological and cultural relationships. By integrating ethnographic collections and community-based knowledge, this study calls for a reconsideration of how we approach plant-based materialities in archaeology, moving beyond the Western conceptualisation of trees as mere resources.
The Problem of Identifying Geoglyphs on the Peruvian Coast, New Methods, Old Problems, the Case of the Middle Valley of the River Casma
Angel Enrique Sanchez Borjas and Jose Joaquin Narvaez Luna, Centro de Investigaciones Arqueologicas Precolombinas
The study of geoglyphs on the Peruvian coast has been carried out mainly on the southern coast, in the area of Palpa and Nasca. No systematic survey had been carried out in the northern part of Peru. Since 2022 we have been investigating the middle basin of the rivers Casma and Sechin, where we have been able to register more than a hundred new geoglyphs. The finding was made as a result of having defined a specific area on the Peruvian coast (between 500 and 1500 m) from our investigations in the central coast (middle valley of the Chillon river). This is how with the help of the program Google Earth, photogrammetry carried out with drones and surveys of the terrain we have been able to identify what might be the third area with the highest concentration of geoglyphs on the Peruvian coast. The finding of a vase with erotic scene suggests the relationship of, current desert spaces, with scenes related to fertility and its location would be on an important route that connects the populated centres of the valley. Our studies indicate that it is important to carry out better and greater surveys in the 32 river basins on the coast of Peru and rescue information that is currently being destroyed by state inaction and high informality.
Lines of Flight: Image-making and the Technology of the Arrow
Dr Rebekka Ladewig, Professor of Image and Art History and Media Philosophy at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe, Germany
The bow and arrow is one of the earliest machines, according to Marcel Mauss’s classification, and, as such, an effective technology of distance. The proliferation of bow and arrow in the European Upper Palaeolithic coincides with the emergence of cave and rock painting. Taking the machinic functions of storing and processing of energy as a point of departure, the paper looks into the relations and interrelations of the material and semiotic lines of flight of the arrow and its role in image-making: it correlates projectile technologies with technologies of projections and links the operations of aiming and pointing as central to image-making.