Book 5, Question 83
Hello From the Past! Why Are Handprints in Caves a Clue?
Some caves have handprints that were made thousands of years ago. A handprint shows that a real person was there, and it can give hints about who made it. Scientists are careful to protect these prints so they can be studied for a long time.
From the book
Page from A Million Whys Book 5
More fun facts
- More than 1,200 years ago, Maya children left 137 red and black handprints on the walls of a hidden cave in Mexico.
- Those Maya handprints were made at a time of big advances in math and art in Maya society.
- Between 169,000 and 226,000 years ago, two children in what is now Tibet left handprints and footprints on a rock.
- Scientists say those Tibet prints look carefully placed, a bit like a child pressing a hand into fresh cement.
- Measuring the size and shape of hand stencils can help scientists tell whether a man or a woman made them.
- Hand stencils and handprints have been found in caves in Argentina, Africa, Borneo and Australia.
- Cave art on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi showed that the first cave artists did not live only in Europe.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, BBC, Smithsonian Magazine, National Geographic, National Geographic
Questions kids ask
Are cave handprints found only in Europe?
No. They have been found in caves in Argentina, Africa, Borneo, Australia and Indonesia too.