Archaeologists discover oldest cave painting to tell a story. Here's what it depicts
The intricate hunting scene details human-like figures pursuing a buffalo.
Archaeologists have discovered what they say is the earliest figurative painting known to man, in a cave in Indonesia.
It depicts an intricate hunting scene, scholars believe, in which eight small, human-like figures pursue an anoa, a type of buffalo found in Indonesia.
![PHOTO: A hunting scene panorama of a cave painting found on the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia was released Dec. 12, 2019. The scene is at least 44,000-years-old and appears to be the earliest known pictorial record of story-telling.](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/cave-4-sh-er-191212_hpEmbed_20x9_992.jpg)
The humans have animal features, like snouts and tails, and appear to be wielding thin objects that scholars are interpreting as spears or ropes.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/cave-2-gty-er-191212_hpEmbed_3x2_992.jpg)
After testing the painting using uranium analysis, scientists determined it to be 44,000 years old. The findings were published this week in the journal Nature.
![](https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/cave-1-gty-er-191212_hpMain_4x5_992.jpg)
While the painting is believed to be the earliest to depict a scene, it's not the earliest drawing on record. That honor goes to an abstract drawing found in a cave in South Africa in 2018 that is believed to be 73,000 years old.