Warty pig is oldest animal cave art on record

The oldest-known animal drawing in the world is a 45,500-year-old depiction of a hairy, warty pig on a cave wall in Indonesia, a new study finds.

The mulberry colored painting, drawn with the red mineral ochre, shows the profile of what is likely a Sulawesi warty pig (Sus celebensis), a wild stubby-legged beast with facial warts that can weigh up to nearly 190 pounds (85 kilograms).

These pigs "are still found there today, although in ever-dwindling numbers," said study co-lead researcher Adam Brumm, a professor of archaeology at Griffith University's Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution.

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(Image: AA Oktaviana)

A digitally enhanced panorama of the warty pigs at Leang Tedongnge Cave, in Sulawesi, Indonesia.

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(Image credit: Maxime Aubert)

A very hairy, warty pig that dates to at least 45,500 years ago was found in an Indonesian cave.

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(Image credit: AA Oktaviana)

This pig, as well as the others, indicate that Indonesia was a hot spot for rock art during the Pleistocene epoch.

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(Image credit: AA Oktaviana)

The outside view of Leang Tedongnge Cave.

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Oldest Cave Art Found in Sulawesi

H. Schlege

The Celebes warty pig (Sus celebensis), also called Sulawesi warty pig or Sulawesi pig, is a species in the pig genus (Sus) that lives on Sulawesi in Indonesia.

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