The term usually implies prehistoric origin, and the oldest known are more than 44,000 years old (art of the Upper Paleolithic), found in both the Franco-Cantabrian region in western Europe, and in ...

Cave paintings of animals such as reindeer, fish and cattle have been found in caves across Europe. But archaeologists had been stumped by the meaning of dots and other marks on the paintings.

Upper Paleolithic cave paintings are found in at least 400 caves ... The most frequent depictions include dots, vertical lines, or "Y" shaped slashes, often appearing in groups.

Long before early modern humans arrived in Europe, Neanderthals were painting in caves, leaving behind animal shapes and hand-prints. They may also have been decorating shells before Homo sapiens did.

Three lines placed within an engraved salmon at Pindal cave in Spain from about 17,000 ... The sequences of dots, shapes and other markings appear alongside depictions of species such as reindeer ...

For instance, a gallery of ancient rock art on the walls of a cave in Argentina ... depicting geometric shapes, animals, and humans. There were many dots, circles, lines, and polygons painted ...