Prehistoric Abstract Signs
Types of Symbols Used in Stone Age Cave Paintings.
MAIN A-Z INDEX - A-Z of PREHISTORIC ART

The Chinese Horse
Lascaux Cave, Dordogne, France.
Note the Pectiform above the horse's
head, and the feathery Penniform
signs on either side of its front legs.
For a list of the 100 earliest artworks
see: Oldest Stone Age Art.

Prehistoric Abstract Signs
Definition - Types - Characteristics - Location - Dating

The Man Wounded by Spears
A rare picture of a human figure.
Pech Merle Cave, Lot, France.
Note the Placard-type abstract symbol
(aviform) above/left of his head.

Introduction

The oldest known cave painting is an abstract sign (a red-ochre disk or dot) discovered at the El Castillo Cave in Cantabria, Spain, which dates back to at least 39,000 BCE. Not far from El Castillo is another ancient Spanish rock shelter known as Altamira Cave, where two abstract symbols (club-shaped images known as claviforms) have been dated to at least 34,000 BCE. It wasn't until four thousand years after this abstract art, that Stone Age artists began to paint pictures of animals. Even then, for every figurative image of a bison, a reindeer or a bull, two abstract images were produced. The truth is, abstract symbols dominate parietal art - at least within the Franco-Cantabrian region - both in terms of age and quantity.

Unfortunately, geometric images can't compare with the beauty of figurative cave art, as exemplified by the powerful bulls in the Lascaux cave paintings or the watching lions in the Chauvet cave paintings. As a result, most symbols were ignored by early archeologists, who dismissed them as no more than doodles. Even today, our interest in rock art is almost exclusively directed towards figurative painting and engraving. In a recent film of the world-famous Chauvet Cave, for example, the film director totally ignored the abstract paintings on the walls, as he moved from one animal picture to another.

But things may be about to change, thanks to Genevieve von Petzinger and April Nowell, researchers at the University of Victoria, British Columbia, whose ground-breaking investigation into the types, characteristics and location of abstract signs and symbols in French cave art during the Upper Paleolithic era, leads them to believe that this mysterious type of abstract cave art may in fact represent the earliest form of pictorial language.

It is true of course that very little prehistoric art is considered to be "art for art's sake": even animal pictures are interpreted as pictographs with their own messages to convey. But that's not really the point. The point is, that what used to be thought of as trivial doodles, scribbles or test markings, may actually be Stone Age man's first attempts to communicate through symbols rather than pictures. If so, a whole new branch of Paleolithic art may be about to open up.

In the following article we offer a brief synopsis of the 28 most significant symbols identified by Genevieve von Petzinger in her acclaimed thesis on this subject, and we gratefully acknowledge the use of data from it. Although we have added extra information on prehistoric symbols found in various different caves and rock shelters around the world, the bulk of the information in this article is based on Petzinger's chosen cohort of 146 prehistoric caves and rock shelters, located in France.

NOTE: The most popular symbol in Ice Age caves in France - found in 70 per cent of the sites and occurs across all time periods from 30,000 to 10,000 years BCE - is the line. The next most popular was the open angle symbol and the dot - both seen in 42 per cent of sites. Most of the remaining symbols were found in about 20 percent of the caves.

Where Do These Abstract Symbols Come From?

One of Petzinger's key observations is that almost threequarters of all the main prehistoric abstract signs were introduced during the Aurignacian era - the earliest phase of the Upper Paleolithic. This suggests that the first use and understanding of symbolic art occurred prior to the arrival of the first modern humans in Europe. And since anatomically modern man originated in Africa, it is there that abstract art probably made its first appearance - a conclusion which appears to be corroborated by recent discoveries in South Africa, at Blombos Cave and Diepkloof rock shelter.

In later articles on this branch of Stone Age art we will be looking at issues such as why these abstract signs were created and what they might mean.

28 Prehistoric Abstract Signs and Symbols

Note: to see how this ancient style of art fits into the overall development of Stone Age culture, see: Prehistoric Art Timeline (from 2.5 million BCE).

Aviform

Characteristics
Derived from the Latin word for bird-shaped, a typical aviform is defined as "a geometric sign consisting of a kind of thick horizontal bar with a downward extension at each end and an upward bar at its centre" (Clottes 2008: 315). Also known as "Placard-type signs" after the type site of Le Placard Cave near La Rochefoucauld in the Charente, which has eleven of these strange abstract rock engravings, the largest number in any cave.

Prevalence/Location
Aviform symbols are quite rare, being found in only about 8 percent of French caves.

Dating
Although the Aviform symbol occurs in three periods - the Aurignacian, the Solutrean and the Magdalenian - most Aviforms were created from the early period of Solutrean art onwards, that is, from about 22,000-20,000 BCE. They appear to stop in France in about 11,000 BCE, but may continue elsewhere.

Examples
Prehistoric caves that contain "Aviforms", include:
- Altamira Cave, Antillana del Mar, Cantabria, Spain.
- Chauvet Cave, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.
- Cougnac Cave, Gourdon, Lot.
- La Combe d'Oulen Cave, Labastide-de-Virac, Ardeche.
- La Pasiega Cave, Puente Viesgo, Cantabria, Spain.
- Le Portel Cave, Ariege.
- Pech Merle Cave, Cabrerets, Lot.

Circle

Characteristics
This geometric sign is shaped as it sounds. It is sometimes referred to by archeologists as being an "incomplete vulva".

Prevalence and Location
Circles and circle shapes are quite widely distributed are are found in 1 in 5 of all French caves, notably in southwest France and across the French Pyrenees.

Dating
The largest proportion of circle signs were created during the era of Aurignacian art, after which its incidence declined during the Gravettian and Solutrean periods before increasing again during the Magdalenian.

Examples
Stone Age caves that contain "Circles", include:
- Abri Castanet, Sergeac, Dordogne.
- Abri Cellier, Tursac, Dordogne.
- Erberua Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Lascaux Cave, Montignac, Dordogne.
- Les Trois Freres Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees
- Roucadour Cave Art, Quercy, Lot.

Claviform

Characteristics
Derived from the Latin word for "club-shaped", a standard claviform is defined as a vertical "P-sign", and is sometimes described by archeologists as a stylized female figure. See the oldest claviforms in the Altamira Cave paintings (c.34,000 BCE).

Prevalence and Location
Claviforms are present in roughly 17 percent of French caves; to start with in the French Alps, later also in the southwest of the country.

Dating
Not unlike Aviforms, most claviforms in France date from about 20,000 BCE onwards, first appearing in the Solutrean, before becoming increasingly popular with Magdalenian cave artists between 15,000 and 10,000 BCE.

Examples
Franco-Cantabrian caves that contain "Claviforms", include:
- Altamira Cave, Antillana del Mar, Cantabria, Spain.
- Cullalvera Cave, Ramales de la Victoria, Cantabria, Spain.
- Fontanet Cave, Ornolac-Ussat-les-Bains, Ariege.
- Le Portel Cave, Ariege.
- Trois Freres Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Les Combarelles Cave, Les Eyzies de Tayac, Dordogne.
- Mazet Cave, Payrignac, Lot.
- Pindal Cave, Ribadedeva, Asturias, Spain.

Cordiform

Characteristics
Derived from the Latin word for "heart-shaped".

Prevalence and Location
The cordiform symbol is extremely rare in France: it exists in only 2 percent of caves.

Dating
The few cordiforms that do exist were created across a wide time-span. The first instance occurred in the Aurignacian, aound 30,000 BCE; the other two instances in the Magdalenian, the last period of Upper Paleolithic culture.

Examples
Prehistoric caves that contain "Cordiforms", include:
- Chauvet Cave, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.
- Fontanet Cave, Ornolac-Ussat-les-Bains, Ariege.
- Planchard Cave, Vallon-Pont-d'Arc, Ardeche.

Crosshatch

Characteristics
Derived from the geometric definition - "two or more sets of intersecting parallel lines" - although Stone Age artists were not quite so precise.

Prevalence and Location
Crosshatch signs are found in roughly 18 percent of French sites, notably in the French Pyrenees. The symbol also occurs on items of mobiliary art during all Upper Paleolithic cultures.

Dating
Crosshatching is one of the oldest abstract signs, first used during the Mousterian culture: see, for instance, the Diepkloof eggshell engravings (c.60,000 BCE). That said, most crosshatching was created after 15,000 BCE, during the period of Magdalenian art, especially in the early part of the period.

Examples
Paleolithic rock shelters that contain "Crosshatch Signs", include:
- Blombos Cave, South Africa
- Diepkloof Cave, South Africa
- Gorham's Cave, Gibraltar
- Gabillou Cave, Valley of l'Isle, Mussidan, Dordogne.
- La Foret Cave, Turzac, Dordogne.
- Les Fieux Cave, Miers, Lot.
- Niaux Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.

Cruciform

Characteristics
A typical cruciform symbol is named after the Latin word for "cross-shaped", having a simple construction of two perpendicular intersecting lines.

Prevalence and Location
Cruciforms are found in roughly 13 percent of French sites. They appear exclusively in southern France, with the strongest concentrations in the Dordogne/Lot region and in the Pyrenees. Cruciforms may have endured in Spain.

Dating
Cruciform signs, not unlike crosshatch symbols, were most popular during the early Magdalenian, with very few instances in the Aurignacian or Gravettian periods.

Examples
French caves that contain "Cruciform symbols", include:
- Cosquer Cave, Calanque de Morgiou, Marseille.
- Grotte du Roc, Les Eyzies, Dordogne.
- Le Papetier Cave, Sauliac, Lot.

Cupule

Characteristics
The actual term "cupule" was first coined by the archeologist Robert G. Bednarik. It signifies a shallow, non-functional cup-like depression, cut into the surface of a rock. Think of it as an engraved dot.

Prevalence and Location
Cupule art has been found at just over 16 percent of French caves, with a strong grouping in the Dordogne/Perigord. Few cupules exist either in the French Alps or Pyrenees.

Dating
Cupules occur frequently in the first 10,000 years of the Ice Age, being seen in more than half of all Aurignacian caves, and 20 percent of Gravettian sites - all of whom are situated in close proximity to each other. After almost disappearing during the Solutrean, cupules returned with a vengeance during the Magdalenian era.

Examples
Stone Age caves that contain "Cupules", include:
- Ganties-Montespan Cave, Haute-Garonne.
- La Ferrassie Cave, Les Eyzies de Tayac, Dordogne.
- Laugerie Basse Cave, Les Eyzies-de-Tayac, Dordogne.
- Oreille d'Enfer Cave, Les Eyzies-de-Tayac, Dordogne.
- Rouffignac Cave, Rouffignac-Saint-Cernin-de-Reilhac, Dordogne.

Dot

Characteristics
As the name indicates, this sign type comprises differing sized points, always painted rather than engraved. Also known as disks or blobs, often painted in red-ochre.

Prevalence and Location
Dots exist in almost 45 percent of all French rock shelters. Its main groupings are in the Ardeche, the Dordogne/Lot region and in the French Pyrenees.

Dating
Half the caves containing dots are Magdalenian, although dots were also painted during the Gravettian and Solutrean.

Examples
Rock shelters that contain "Dots", include:
- Cantal Cave, Cabrerets, Lot.
- El Castillo Cave, Puente Viesgo, Cantabria, Spain.
- Lascaux Cave, Montignac, Dordogne.
- Les Trois Freres Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Tibiran Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.

Fan-Shape (Flabelliform)

Characteristics
As the name suggests these signs are shaped like a fan - not unlike the geometric symbol for an open angle but with extra interior lines emanating from the apex. The Latin name for this type of symbol is Flabelliform.

Prevalence and Location
Fan-shaped signs are present at roughly 19 percent of French sites. To begin with, they appeared only in south-east France, but then spread out before concentrating during the Magdalenian into two large groupings - one in the Dordogne/Lot area, the other in the French Pyrenees.

Dating
The early Magdalenian era witnessed the majority of flabelliforms, followed by the Aurignacian and then the Solutrean.

Examples
Ice Age caves that contain "Fan-Shaped signs" (Flabelliforms), include:
- Labastide Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Lascaux Cave, Montignac, Dordogne.
- Le Roc Pointu Cave, Castels, Dordogne.
- Sainte-Eulalie Cave, Espagnac, Lot.

Finger Fluting

Characteristics
Like cupules, the term finger fluting was invented by Robert Bednarik to describe the lines left by fingers on a soft surface. They are also sometimes referred to as "traces digitaux" or finger tracings, or "macaroni".

Prevalence and Location
Finger flutings are found at approximately 16 percent of all French sites. Incidence is widespread with signs being found in the Ardeche, along the Pyrenees, and in the Perigord. Elsewhere they are found in south Australia - see Koonalda Cave Art (18,000 BCE) - Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. See also: Oceanic Art.

Dating
Gravettian and Magdalenian caves account for nearly half the known finger flutings in France, though this sign is also quite common in the Aurignacian.

Examples
Prehistoric sites of "Finger Fluting" include:
- Altamira Cave, Antillana del Mar, Cantabria, Spain.
- Baume Latronne Cave, Sainte-Anastasie, Gard.
- Zone of Crevices, Gargas Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Koonalda Cave, Nullarbor Plain, South Australia.
- Desbordes Panel, Rouffignac Cave, Dordogne.

Half-Circle

Characteristics
This geometric sign is shaped as the name suggests. Archeolgists sometimes refer to it as an incomplete vulva.

Prevalence and Location
Half-circle shapes occur at 19 percent of French sites and seem to have been used in all areas except northern France.

Dating
Unlike most other abstract symbols found in caves, half-circles were used consistently throughout the Ice Age - in the Aurignacian, Gravettian, Solutrean and Magdalenian eras.

Examples
Prehistoric caves that contain "Half-Circle symbols", include:
- Cougnac Cave, Gourdon, Lot.
- La Baume-Latrone Cave, Sainte-Anastasie, Gard.
- Lascaux Cave, Montignac, Dordogne.
- Mas d'Azil Cave, Le Mas-d'Azil, Ariege.

Hand Stencil

Characteristics
This type of hand-sign is made by placing a hand against the surface of the rock and then spraying pigment over and around it. When the hand is removed, it leaves a bare imprint of itself in a patch of pigment. It is known as a negative handprint. While representing the human hand, these stencils vary considerably in shape and in the number and size of their digits. As a result, it is quite conceivable that they represent some kind of simple sign language - possibly with a hunting connection, due to their proximity to animal paintings. See for instance the hand images around the famous "Dappled Horses" panel, the most famous of the Pech Merle Cave paintings (c.25,000 BCE).

Prevalence and Location
Hand stencils appear in caves and rock shelters, and on rock surfaces throughout the prehistoric world. Curiously, they often appear in conjunction with dots: see, for example, the El Castillo Cave paintings in Cantabria, Spain.

Dating
Stencilled hands appear at sites of Mesolithic art and Neolithic art, as well as during the Paleolithic: see, for example, the Cueva de las Manos in Argentina (c.9,000 BCE). Strangely however, although seen around the world, this sign-type is rarely seen in France after 11,000 BCE.

Examples
Stone Age caves with "Hand Stencils" (listed chronologically), include:
- El Castillo Cave, Puente Viesgo, Cantabria, Spain.
- Gargas Cave Hand Stencils, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Abri du Poisson Cave, Perigord
- Maltravieso Cave, Spain
- La Garma Cave, Spain.
- Altamira Cave, Spain.
- Font-de-Gaume, Les Eyzies, Dordogne.
- Cougnac Cave, Gourdon, Lot.
- Les Combarelles, Les Eyzies de Tayac, Dordogne.
- Rouffignac Cave, Rouffignac-Saint-Cernin-de-Reilhac, Dordogne.
- Fern Cave, north Queensland, Australia. See: Aboriginal Rock Art.
- Cave of Hands (La Cueva de las Manos) Patagonia, Argentina.
- Elands Bay Cave, South Africa.

Handprints

Characteristics
This sort of hand sign is made by coating the hand (or palm) in pigment and then pressing it against the surface of the rock. When withdrawn, it leaves a coloured imprint of the hand (or palmprint) on the rock wall. These images are known as positive handprints. As in the case of hand stencils, the differing shapes and features of handprints enable them to convey different meanings, and thus may act as a primitive kind of sign-language. Good examples of handprints appear among the Cosquer Cave paintings (c.25,000 BCE).

Prevalence and Location
Handprints appear at only ten French sites, less than 7 percent of the total, although this sign-type can be seen in caves and rock shelters throughout the world. In Australia, for instance, abstract symbols including hand paintings can be seen in Ubirr Rock Art in Kakadu National Park, Arnhem Land (from 30,000 BCE), Kimberley Rock Art in Western Australia (30,000 BCE), and the ancient Burrup Peninsula Rock Art in the Pilbara (c.30,000 BCE). Bradshaw paintings (c.15,000 BCE) in the Kimberley, also known as Gwion art, were the first to include symbols representing 'action', 'speech' and 'movement'.

Dating
Handprints first appear in the Aurignacian, rise to a peak during the period of Gravettian art, before declining remorselessly in the Solutrean and vanishing (at least in France) in the Magdalenian.

Examples
Prehistoric caves that contain "Handprints" (positive hands), include:
- Chauvet, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.
- La Cueva de las Manos (Cave of the Hands) Patagonia, Argentina.

Line

Definition, Prevalence and Location
Painted with a single stroke, this is the simplest abstract marking in French caves (although lines were often ignored by early archeologists and anthropologists), and occurs at more than threequarters of all sites across the country.

Dating
The prevalence of line-symbols in so many locations across all periods raises the interesting question: why are lines not seen in every cave? To which, of course, there is no answer.

Examples
See, for instance, the ceiling of the Axial Gallery, at Lascaux Cave.

Open-Angle

Characteristics
This sign type derives from its geometric form. A typical open-angle sign is shaped like a horizontal 'V'.

Prevalence and Location
During the Paleolithic Ice Age (c.30,000-10,000 BCE) open-angle signs were created at 45 percent of all French sites. Groupings occur in the Dordogne and Lot region, and along the Pyrenees, but there are no examples in the Ardeche.

Dating
Open-angles are among the oldest sign-types, its first known incidence being in the Blombos Cave engravings (c.75,000 BCE) in South Africa. Slightly more prevalent in the Aurignacian, they were used less in the Gravettian, before returning to popularity during the Solutrean and, especially, the Magdalenian.

Examples
Upper Paleolithic caves that contain "Open Angle signs", include:
- Blombos Cave, South Africa - see also: African Art.
- Cosquer Cave, Calanque de Morgiou, Marseille.
- Massat Cave, Ariege, Pyrenees.
- Saint-Cirq Cave, Saint-Cirq-du-Bugue, Dordogne.

Oval

Characteristics
This geometric sign type is shaped according to its name. Archeologists sometimes refer to it as a vulva-shape.

Prevalence and Location
Ovals are the fourth most common sign-type, occurring at approximately 30 percent of French sites. During the Aurignacian and Gravettian, ovals are found mostly in the southwest (Dordogne), before regrouping in the southeast during the Solutrean. In the Magdalenian period ovals are once again heavily concentrated in the French southwest.

Dating
Oval signs appear throughout the Ice Age, but then suddenly vanish around 11,000 BCE.

Examples
Rock shelters that contain "Oval symbols", include:
- Abri Blanchard Sergeac, Dordogne.
- Abri du Colombier II, Vallon-Pont-d'Arc, Ardeche.
- Le Fourneau du Diable Cave, Bourdeilles, Dordogne.
- Mayenne-Sciences Cave, Thorigne-en-Charnie, Mayenne, France.
- Sombre Cave, Saint-Martin-d'Ardeche, Ardeche.

Pectiform

Characteristics
The pectiform sign-type is named after the Latin for "comb-shaped" and is a cousin to the penniform, with which it shares some characteristics.

Prevalence and Location
Pectiforms occur at just over 5 percent of French sites. Most are to be found in southwest France in the Dordogne/Lot region.

Dating
The vast majority of all comb-shaped symbols were created during the Magdalenian. None are found in the Aurignacian or Solutrean, and only one was found during the Gravettian. Although the timings are probably different for Spanish sites.

Examples
Ancient caves that contain "Pectiform signs", include:
- Blombos Cave, South Africa.
- Etxeberri Cave, Camou-Cihigue, Pyrenees-Atlantiques.
- La Pileta Cave, Benaojan, near Ronda, Malaga, Spain.
- La Roque Cave, Peyzac le Moustier, Dordogne.
- Lascaux Cave, Dordogne.
- Les Fieux Cave, Miers, Lot.
- Marsoulas Cave, Haute-Garonne, Midi-Pyrenees.

Penniform

Characteristics
Penniforms get their name from the Latin for "feather-shaped". They are also sometimes referred to as "barbed signs" or "ramiform signs".

Prevalence and Location
The Penniform symbol is present at 26 percent of French sites, often on or close to the sides of animal paintings. Examples can be seen, for instance, on the panel of the Chinese horse at Lascaux. As a result, it is possible that the sign-type is associated in some way with hunting or food. Curiously, there is a small engraving of a penniform symbol on the right side of the limestone relief sculpture known as the Venus of Laussel (c.23,000 BCE), found in the Dordogne in 1911.

Dating
Penniforms do not appear until the end of the Aurignacian, about 26,000 BCE, leaving open the possibility it was invented in Spain or elsewhere. Most examples date from the Magdalenian era.

Examples
Franco-Cantabrian caves that contain "Penniform symbols", include:
- El Castillo Cave, Puente Viesgo, Spain.
- Lascaux Cave, Montignac, Dordogne.
- Las Monedas Cave, Puente Viesgo, Spain.
- Marsoulas Cave, Haute-Garonne.
- Niaux Cave, Hautes-Pyrenees.
- Pergouset Cave, Saint-Gery, Lot.

Quadrangle

Characteristics
Quadrangles are named after their geometric shape, although - for convenience - von Petzinger also includes other four-sided figures in this category, including rectangles, squares, rhomboids and trapezoids. Also included are shield-shaped symbols (scutiforms) and "cloisonne" shapes (quadrangles with crosshatch patterns inside).

Prevalence and Location
These 4-sided signs appear in 20 percent of French caves. At first quadrangles occur mainly in the Dordogne in southwestern France. Later they spread further south to the Ardeche and the Pyrenees.

Dating
Quadrangle-type signs were painted and engraved in all periods of the Upper Paleolithic, occurring most frequently in the Aurignacian, which ranks it amongst the oldest art in its field.

Examples
Ancient sites containing "Quadrangle signs", include:
- La Sudrie Cave, Villac, Dordogne.
- Montgaudier Cave, Montbron, Charente.
- Roucadour Cave, Themines, Lot.

In Spain, Quadrangles appear in the caves of El Castillo, La Pasiega, Las Chimenas and Altamira.

Reniform

Characteristics
The name Reniform derives from the Latin term for "kidney-shaped". It is similar to but still distinct from circles and ovals.

Prevalence and Location
Reniform symbols are rare, being found at only three French sites. All three sites are closely clustered in the Dordogne.

Dating
Caves containing reniforms date back to three separate periods: the Aurignacian, Gravettian and Magdalenian.

Examples
Paleolithic caves that contain "Reniform signs", include:
- Abri Cellier, Tursac, Dordogne.
- Bara-Bahau Cave, Le Bugue, Dordogne.
- Roc de Vezac Cave, Pontou Valley, Dordogne.

Scalariform

Characteristics
This distinctive sign-type is named after the Latin word for "ladder-shaped". A typical scalariform consists of two parallel lines, connected at right-angles by a number of interior lines.

Prevalence and Location
Scalariforms, like Reniforms, are rare, and occur at only three French sites: two in the Dordogne, one in the Ardeche.

Dating
Sites containing scalariforms belong to the Gravettian and Magdalenian periods.

Examples
Stone Age caves that contain "Scalariform symbols", include:
- Abri du Colombier II, Vallon-Pont-d'Arc, Ardeche.
- Abri du Poisson, Les Eyzies de Tayac, Perigord.
- Altamira Cave, Spain.
- Blombos Cave, South Africa.
- Bara-Bahau Cave, Le Bugue, Dordogne.

Serpentiform

Characteristics
This term means "serpent-shaped" or "snake-shaped" in Latin, and the sign resembles a curvilinear zigzag.

Prevalence and Location
Serpentiforms are present at 7.5 percent of French sites. They appear first in the Ardeche region before moving north into the Yonne and to the southwest into the Dordogne.

Dating
Although appearing for the first time in the Aurignacian, most serpentiforms are from the Magdalenian.

Examples
Ice Age shelters that contain "Serpentiform signs", include:
- Abri Pataud, Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Dordogne.
- Grande Grotte d'Arcy-sur-Cure, Yonne.
- Grotte du Cheval Foix, Ariege.

Spiral

Characteristics
This sign type is named after its geometric form.

Prevalence and Location
Spiral signs are rare in French caves. Only two rock shelters contain spirals: one in the north, one in the southwest. This rarity in French parietal art contrasts strongly with the widespread use of spirals in the Bronze Age and Iron Age, as exemplified by the spiral triskelion engravings at Newgrange Passage Tomb (3300-2900 BCE) and Knowth Passage Tomb (2500-2000 BCE).

Dating
The first occurrence is in the Gravettian, the second is in the Magdalenian.

Examples
Prehistoric sites that contain "Spiral signs", include:
- Cougnac Cave, Gourdon, Lot.
- Grande Grotte d'Arcy-sur-Cure, Yonne.

See also the countless instances of spirals in Celtic Art in both Hallstatt and La Tene style. (See also: Celtic Spiral Designs.)

Tectiform

Characteristics
This sign-type is named after the Latin word for "roof-shaped". A typical tectiform is composed of a peaked roof, from which a vertical line extends downwards as far as a horizontal base.

Prevalence and Location
This sign is not common, appearing at just 6 percent of French sites, most of which are grouped in the Dordogne.

Dating
Tectiforms appear in the Gravettian, Solutrean and Magdalenian periods, between about 22,000 and 11,000 BCE.

Examples
French prehistoric caves that contain "Tectiform signs", include:
- Bayol Cave, Near Pont du Gard Aqueduct, Nimes.
- Bernifal Cave, Vezere Valley, Dordogne.
- Cournazac Cave, Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Dordogne.
- Font-de-Gaume Cave, Les Eyzies, Dordogne.
- Le Bison Cave, Yonne.
- Les Fieux Cave, Miers, Lot.

See also the Cave of La Pasiega, in Cantabria, Spain.

Triangle

Characteristics
Triangle signs are shaped just like their regular geometric form.

Prevalence and Location
Triangle symbols are found at roughly 23 percent of French sites. Groupings occur in the Dordogne/Lot area, and also in the Ardeche, but triangle symbols also occur in the north and extreme south. Further afield, the triangle sign type also appears at the Creswell Crags site in Britain.

Dating
Triangles appears in all periods of the Upper Paleolithic. The highest occurrence frequency is in the Magdalenian era.

Examples
Stone Age shelters that contain "Triangle signs", include:
- Chauvet, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.
- Grotte des Deux-Ouvertures (Cave of Two Openings)
- La Mouthe Cave, Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Dordogne.
- Margot Cave, Thorigne-en-Charnie, Mayenne, Pays de la Loire.
- Pair-Non-Pair Cave, Prignac-et-Marcamps, Gironde.
- Sainte-Eulalie Cave, Espagnac, Lot.

Unciform

Characteristics
This new term means "hook-shaped" in Latin. It is also referred to as "crochet" (French for "hook-shape").

Prevalence and Location
Unciforms are very rare, being found at only five French sites (3.4 percent of the total). Two sites exist in the southeast and southwest of the country, and one in the Pyrenees. However, being a new category, more examples are sure to be located.

Dating
Unciform symbols first appear in the Aurignacian, around 30,000 BCE, but can also be seen in the Gravettian, Solutrean and the Magdalenian.

Examples
Prehistoric caves that contain "Unciform signs", include:
- Chauvet Cave, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.

W-sign

Characteristics
Also known as "Chauvet-type signs" or "cursive w-signs", these newly-defined W-symbols are shaped exactly as they sound.

Prevalence and Location
W-signs are present at some 5 percent of French caves. Of the seven sites, four are concentrated in the Lot, in southwest France.

Dating
W-signs appear for the first time at Chauvet Cave, during the Aurignacian. They also occur in the Gravettian (once), the Solutrean (twice), and the Magdalenian (three sites).

Examples
Stone Age rock shelters that contain "W-signs", include:
- Chauvet Cave, Ardeche Valley, Rhone-Alpes.
- Les Cuzoul-des-Brasconies, Blars, Lot.

Zigzag

Characteristics
Shaped exactly as it sounds, the zigzag sign was one of the most popular motifs of the ancient world and appears in some of the earliest art of prehistory. One of the earliest examples of the zigzag motif occurs in the Blombos Cave engravings (c.75,000 BCE), in South Africa. See also the zig-zag motifs at Catal Huyuk Neolithic Archeological Site, Anatolia, Turkey.

Prevalence and Location
In contrast to its use in other forms of ancient art, zigzags appear in only 5 percent of French sites.

Dating
Zigzags are found in the Solutrean (once) and the Magdalenian (six sites).

Examples
Prehistoric sites that contain "zigzag signs", include:
- Cosquer Cave, Calanque de Morgiou, Marseille.
- Le Cuzoul-des-Brasconies, Cabrerets, Lot.
- Pergouset Cave, Saint-Gery, Lot.
- Grotte Christian, Lot.

Other Stone Age Caves with Abstract Signs

Abstract symbols are a common feature of Franco-Cantabrian cave art from the Early Aurignacian to the Late Magdalenian. Here are some additional sites where they can be seen.

FRANCE
Other Stone Age sites in France, where abstract symbols are present, include: the rock shelters of Abri de Pille-Bourse, Abri Faustin and Abri Pataud; the caves at Baume de Bouchon, Bedeilhac, Bois du Cantet, Cap Blanc, Carriot, Cassegros, Cazelle, Chabot, Commarque, Cournazac, Cova Bastera, Cussac, Derocs, Ebbou, Font-de-Gaume, Fornols Haut (Campome), Fronsac, Gabillou, Gavrinis (passage grave), Gourdan, Huchard, Isturitz, Jovelle, La Bigourdane, La Cavaille, La Marche, La Martine, Labattut, Laussel, Le Bison, Le Bourgnetou, Le Croc-Marin, Le Cuzoul-de-Melanie, Le Moulin-de-Laguenay, Le Pigeonnier, Le Travers de Janoye, Le Tuc d'Audoubert Cave, Les Bernous, Les Eglises, Les Escabasses, Les Faux-Monnayeurs, Les Merveilles, Mitrot, Murat, Muzardie, Oxocelhaya, Pestillac, Pradieres, Reseau Clastres, Sous-Grand-Lac, and the Tete-du-Lion; and the Grotte d'Antoine, the Grotte de la Bergerie de Charmasson, the Grotte des Deux-Ouvertures (Cave of Two Openings), the Grotte des Points and the Grotte du Renard.

SPAIN
Other Spanish rock shelters with abstract signs and symbols, include: the caves at Chufin (Rionansa), Hornos de la Pena (San Felices de Buelna), Las Monedas (Puente Viesgo), El Castillo (Puente Viesgo), Las Chimeneas (Puente Viesgo), La Garma (Luena), Covalanas (Ramales de Victoria), Tito Bustillo Cave (Ribadesella), Candamo (Candamu), La Covaciella (Cabrales), Llonin (Penamellera Alta), Altxerri (Aia), Ekain (Deba), Santimamine (Kortezubi) and Maltravieso Cave (Caceres).

REST OF THE WORLD
Elsewhere, prehistoric abstract imagery can be seen in the Belize rock shelter at Actun Uayazba Kab, Elands Bay Cave (South Africa), Fern Cave (north Queensland, Australia), Nawarla Gabarnmang Rock Shelter (Arnhem Land, Australia), Gua Ham Masri Cave (East Borneo, Indonesia), the Kalimantan Caves (Sangkulirang, Indonesia), the Karawari Caves (Papua New Guinea), Red Hands Cave (NSW, Australia) and Zuschen Tomb (Westphalian stone cist) (Hesse, Germany).

• For later metalworking cultures, see: Bronze Age Art (c.3500-1100 BCE).
• For later blacksmith cultures, see: Iron Age Art (c.1100-200 BCE).

• For more information about prehistoric cave art, see: Homepage.

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF STONE AGE ART
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