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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2011; 108(46); 18626-18630; doi: 10.1073/pnas.1108982108

Genotypes of predomestic horses match phenotypes painted in Paleolithic works of cave art.

Abstract: Archaeologists often argue whether Paleolithic works of art, cave paintings in particular, constitute reflections of the natural environment of humans at the time. They also debate the extent to which these paintings actually contain creative artistic expression, reflect the phenotypic variation of the surrounding environment, or focus on rare phenotypes. The famous paintings "The Dappled Horses of Pech-Merle," depicting spotted horses on the walls of a cave in Pech-Merle, France, date back ~25,000 y, but the coat pattern portrayed in these paintings is remarkably similar to a pattern known as "leopard" in modern horses. We have genotyped nine coat-color loci in 31 predomestic horses from Siberia, Eastern and Western Europe, and the Iberian Peninsula. Eighteen horses had bay coat color, seven were black, and six shared an allele associated with the leopard complex spotting (LP), representing the only spotted phenotype that has been discovered in wild, predomestic horses thus far. LP was detected in four Pleistocene and two Copper Age samples from Western and Eastern Europe, respectively. In contrast, this phenotype was absent from predomestic Siberian horses. Thus, all horse color phenotypes that seem to be distinguishable in cave paintings have now been found to exist in prehistoric horse populations, suggesting that cave paintings of this species represent remarkably realistic depictions of the animals shown. This finding lends support to hypotheses arguing that cave paintings might have contained less of a symbolic or transcendental connotation than often assumed.
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Publication Date: 2011-11-07 PubMed ID: 22065780PubMed Central: PMC3219153DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1108982108Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article
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  • Non-U.S. Gov't

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research provides evidence that Paleolithic cave art realistically depicts the horses from that time period, as the genotypes of predomestic horses match the phenotypes portrayed in the art.

Objective of the Research

The research aimed to examine whether Paleolithic works of art, specifically cave paintings, accurately depict the natural environment, specifically the phenotypes of predomestic horses, or instead focus on rare phenotypes or artistic expression. This involved comparing the genotypes of predomestic horses with the phenotypes portrayed in the cave art.

Methodology

  • The researchers genotyped nine coat-color loci in 31 predomestic horses from Siberia, Eastern and Western Europe, and the Iberian Peninsula.
  • The coat colors of the horses were categorized into bay, black, and spotted, associated with the leopard complex spotting (LP), a distinct pattern observed in wild, predomestic horses.
  • The researchers then compared this data with the phenotypes portrayed in the cave art, like the spotted horses in “The Dappled Horses of Pech-Merle.

Findings

  • Out of the 31 horses, 18 had bay coat color, 7 were black, and 6 shared the LP allele.
  • The LP phenotype was found in four Pleistocene and two Copper Age samples from Western and Eastern Europe, respectively.
  • Contrarily, this phenotype was not found in predomestic Siberian horses.
  • The researchers found that all horse color phenotypes that can be distinguished in cave paintings were found to exist in prehistoric horse populations.

Conclusion

The research suggests that Paleolithic cave paintings are remarkably realistic depictions of the animals they portray, rather than imaginative or symbolic representations. This supports the idea that cave art might not have been heavily symbolic or transcendental, but instead an accurate reflection of the artists’ environment.

Cite This Article

APA
Pruvost M, Bellone R, Benecke N, Sandoval-Castellanos E, Cieslak M, Kuznetsova T, Morales-Muñiz A, O'Connor T, Reissmann M, Hofreiter M, Ludwig A. (2011). Genotypes of predomestic horses match phenotypes painted in Paleolithic works of cave art. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 108(46), 18626-18630. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1108982108

Publication

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
ISSN: 1091-6490
NlmUniqueID: 7505876
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 108
Issue: 46
Pages: 18626-18630

Researcher Affiliations

Pruvost, Melanie
  • Research Group of Evolutionary Genetics, The Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, 10252 Berlin, Germany.
Bellone, Rebecca
    Benecke, Norbert
      Sandoval-Castellanos, Edson
        Cieslak, Michael
          Kuznetsova, Tatyana
            Morales-Muñiz, Arturo
              O'Connor, Terry
                Reissmann, Monika
                  Hofreiter, Michael
                    Ludwig, Arne

                      MeSH Terms

                      • Alleles
                      • Animals
                      • Archaeology / methods
                      • Europe
                      • France
                      • Genotype
                      • Geography
                      • Heterozygote
                      • History, Ancient
                      • Horses / genetics
                      • Horses / physiology
                      • Models, Genetic
                      • Phenotype
                      • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
                      • Siberia
                      • Spain

                      Conflict of Interest Statement

                      The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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                      Citations

                      This article has been cited 23 times.
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