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Running Head: THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

The First Story Tellers

Michela Rieck
Mrs. Van Duyn
South Newton High School

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

Abstract
Cave people painted murals on the walls of their caves for more than decorations. The
paintings were created to tell the stories about what the hunters were hunting or the events
occurring in their environment. Also, cave paintings were used to communicate with other cave
people during their cave stay, and for the next Neanderthals to inhabit the same cave later.
Religious usage is a way to interpret the use of the paintings as well. The keeping of records
was important to the cave people to keep track of a variety of things they did; such as sacrifices
or game hunted. Cave people could talk, but they did not have a written language, so painting
was a way to savor the memories and stories. Of course, there is information that is unknown
about the cave paintings. The creation of cave paintings lead to the later development of the first
known written language of the Sumerians, cuneiform. (History of Written Language, 2011)

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

The First Story Tellers
Nowadays, artists create pictures to tell stories that they developed in their minds. In
Paleolithic times, Neanderthals used paintings on the walls to convey the stories of their lives.
Paul Johnson states that cave paints existed before Neanderthal time, during Upper Paleolithic
period (40,000 to 10,000 BC) (Johnson, n.d.). A particular message was depicted in the artwork
to either the Neanderthals at the time of the creation, or future Neanderthals that would later
discover the paintings. Throughout the ages, interpretations have been developed of what the
paints mean and why they were created, but a theory cannot always be deduced. The earliest
written language, after the cave paintings, was the cuneiform developed by the Sumerians. The
development of cave paintings lead to the future of writing as we know it today.
Many cave painting were created to show ongoing events in the daily lives of clans in
prehistoric times. Most pictures included the usual animals that were hunted; such as buffalo,
serpents, and other beasts. The caves also feature figurative artfor example, of horses and
bison, (Than, 2012). The pictures told the ongoing stories of the cave peoples lives. These
stories possessed many of their daily activities; such as hunting and gathering. The different
types of animals found on the land were included so hunters knew which animals were in the
area during that time of year, and to compare the population of herds from season to season of
the year. The interactions that were made between the humans and the animals, or the animals
that were killed, and how, were all detailed within the paintings on the wall chronologically to
serve as knowledge for later years. Many drawings depicted humans with pointed tools
alongside wild dogs, serpents and other beasts, (Frank, 2013). Other creations were,
interpretations of animal behavior and postures, (White, n.d.) which was observed during the
humans daily schedules. The paintings served as a remembrance of the world around them.

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

Some pictures have been thought to have been created to give the family high hopes before
hunting had taken place.
Artwork was also created for religious purposes. Many hunters and gathers created
stories with the animal they planned on hunting because they believed that they could pursue a
plentiful hunt if they first gave recognition to them. Some animals were created, large near
life size, (Grabianowski, n.d.) to be able to call the spirits of the animal near to the hunters.
The larger, or more life-like, the animal was drawn, the better chance the spirit of the animal had
of coming to the hunting grounds. Many believed that this method was the only way, to make
good hunting possible, (Clottes, n.d.). Some shrines would be specific to what the hunter was
looking for, while others would be a collection of different animals in hope that prey would come
nearby.
Other paintings were created to worship the animals and tell the story of how and why the
Netherlands worshipped them. Clans believed that the worship of a particular animal, sought to
be of a higher power, would bring them everything in which they needed; such as game. The
paintings represented the ideal sacrifice that would be completed to the higher spirit to which the
clan would have the most fulfilled outcome. Each animal they painted was an animal sacred to
a tribe or clan, an animal never hunted for food saved at annual sacrifice, (Hogben, 1969,
p.8). These paintings, however, were not always found in the easiest places in the cave. Some
paintings can be found in deeper places of the caves that are harder to reach. Cave people
created these elaborate paintings deep in the cave to give them a more religious meaning. the
underground has been perceived as being a supernatural [religious] world, (Clottes, n.d.) Even
though the dwellers did not stay in the same cave for an exceedingly amount of time, they kept
account on what was happening during that specific duration of time.

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

Cave paintings have been found to represent a form of record keeping. Paintings have
been found to, consist only of a number of signs, (Hogben, 1969, p.8) such as dots or strokes.
These record marks were found near paintings of certain animals, which represented the quantity
of that specific animal that was collect during a certain duration of time. As well as a type of
inventory, the records served as, a future reference for animal migration patterns, (Cave
Painting, n.d.). The hunters were able to refer back to their records as a reminder of past
accomplishments, along with a remembrance of what animals, and how many, resided on the
area of land that was being hunted. Hunters were also able to plan ahead for future hunts more
effectively by recording their findings by going to where the game had been previously. Of
course, the migration would not always be the same but the hunters would have a record to help
them see the difference from year to year. Other records were found by themselves which
indicated that they could have a variety of meanings; such as the amount of sacrifices made.
Expert, Joseph Campbell, informs his readers in his book, The Power of Myth, that historians
know an exceedingly amount of information about ancient history, but there comes a point in
time that the meanings is unsure (Campbell, 1988, p.8). The Netherlands created the starting
point to the later discovered first written language.
The first know written language is cuneiform used by the Sumerians. There is quite a gap
in between cave paintings and cuneiform; cuneiform first being discovered in 2500 BC
(Sumerian Language, n.d.).The Sumerians prospered in the Fertile Crescent, known today as
Iraq. First used as tally marks for trade like cave painting record keeping, cuneiform was
developed more to create contracts and legal code for the economy. Symbols that were created
that represented the first letter sound of the word written (History Of Written Language, 2011).

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

Cave paintings were created to tell the stories of the people that lived during the
prehistoric era. There was no written language during this time, even though the humans were
able to talk. They expressed themselves through the means of art. Their pictures would depict
certain events or thoughts going on during their lives, just like our books today. Painting, to
Neanderthals, was a way of communicating with one another. In painting such pictures they
had unknowingly taken the first step towards the power to communicate beyond reach of human
voice and beyond the grave, (Hogben, 1969, p. 8). The cave painters sparked the development
of literature. They improved on the technique of literature over time, just as humans do today.
The stages of human development are the same today as they were in the ancient times,
(Campbell, 1988, p.70)

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

References
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Frank, P. (2013, June 18). America's Oldest Cave Paintings Found, Date Back 6,000 Years
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Than, K. (2012, June 14). World's Oldest Cave Art FoundMade by Neanderthals?. National

THE FIRST STORY TELLERS

Geographic, Daily News. Retrieved November 2, 2013, from
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APA formatting by BibMe.org.