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According to a new study ancient rock engravings in what is now South America – believed to be one of the largest in the world – were used to mark the boundaries of the territories where their makers lived.
Birds, Amazonian centipedes, human figures and geometric shapes are among the designs, found across 14 sites – most already known, but some newly discovered – along a 60-mile (97-kilometer) stretch of the Orinoco River , in present-day Venezuela. and Colombia.
However, the most represented motif is that of giant snakes, and probably one in particular – in a site known as Cerro Pintado in Venezuela – which is about 138 feet (42 meters) long is the single rock engraving. the most recorded anywhere in the world, the researchers suggested. .
“There are two sides to these as markers of territory,” said Dr. Philip Riris, lead author of the study published on Monday in the journal Antiquity. “One could be a warning sign – you’re in our backyard, you better behave. The other could be a sign of recognition – you are in our backyard, you are among friends. But I don’t think they had one purpose, so they could easily have both.”
Snake mythology
The study focuses on the meaning and role of the snakes in the mythology of the indigenous people of the area, said Riris, a senior lecturer in archaeological environmental modeling at Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom. He believes the rocks were probably carved by local inhabitants between 1,000 and 2,000 years ago, based on pottery and motifs from that time frame found in the same area.
“Snakes are fascinating, because they are both creators and protectors. According to local mythology, they shaped the rivers as they traveled, but they are also predators, full of dangerous energy that you must respect in order not to incur their wrath,” Riris said, explaining why they be as well. divine meaning as rock carvings.
All the snake designs have a visual consistency, and Riris believes they could represent boa constrictors or anacondas, although the artists are not necessarily interested in accurately depicting certain species: “Indigenous people don’t always distinguish between species in the same way that we do. in scientific taxonomy – they could be large predatory snakes that kill by constriction,” he said.
Humans are often depicted alongside the snakes, and giant Amazonian centipedes, which prey on snakes in the Orinoco. The geometric designs include concentric circles, spirals and rectangles, but their meaning is not quite clear, according to Riris.
The use of such ancient memorial marks as territorial markers has previously been viewed, but the Orinoco engravings stand out, Riris noted.
“What makes the Orinoco special is how big they are, the size and density, and the lengths their creators had to go to make them,” he said. Some of the rock formations on which they are carved are “charcoal,” Riris said, noting that the artists may have had to use ropes or ladders to reach them.
Native guardians
The study is the result of data collected by Riris and his colleagues during 10 years of fieldwork — co-authors Dr. José Oliver and Natalia Lozada Mendieta — although some of the research was used for other studies. Oliver is a reader in Latin American archeology at University College London and Lozada Mendieta is assistant professor of art history at the Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia.
The markings are located in a section of the river known as the Atures Rapids, which is known to have been an important trade and travel route in prehistoric times. The team used special software to recreate the perspective of the ancient inhabitants and see how the markings would have appeared to them.
Today, with tourism on the rise, the sites may be at risk of vandalism, and the researchers have registered them with the national heritage bodies of Colombia and Venezuela.
“Fortunately, none of them were damaged as far as we know, but with more people around they are more exposed,” said Riris, adding that both the authorities and the indigenous people, who feel that they own them, to be involved. their defense.
The ancient works give us a rare insight into how indigenous groups of the Orinoco perceived their landscape and made it sacred and instrumental through rock engravings, said George Lau, professor of American art and archeology at the University of East Anglia in the UK. . He was not involved in the study.
“It also demonstrates the long-term resilience of this art to indigenous landscapes, particularly the importance of mythical creatures to local belief systems. The study is really just the tip of the iceberg of the very rich archeology and ancient cultures of this region,” he said.
According to Dr. Alexander Geurds, associate professor in the archeology of Central and South America at the University of Oxford in the UK, this research greatly contributes to the understanding of rock art in northern South America. He was not involved in the work either.
The study goes further than earlier work, Geurds said, because it not only records the location and style of the carved pictures, but also deals with their unusual size. Applying computer-based visual analysis is an innovative step, he said, as it helps to understand how the scale of the carvings affects the ability to see them from afar – a likely scenario for indigenous groups would travel along the Orinoco River.
Part of the key importance of these large-scale carvings was the collective work they required: “Especially at larger rivers and at river junctions, these may have been places where people came together to eventually form intercommunal bonds of the pre-Hispanic period,” said Geurds. . “Also, rapids (ironically) slow down canoe traffic, allowing for a suitable theater to see the images. These giant snakes are silent witnesses of this past social life.”
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