Art of the Middle Paleolithic

Altpaläolithische Cabaret is a collective term for controversial prehistoric finds of stone tools and fire stones from the Lower Palaeolithic that resemble faces or animals and supposedly represent the earliest art of humanity. However, the majority of scientists do not believe in the manufacture of such sculptures in front of the Upper Paleolithic, but keeps it all for geofacts ( natural products ). Also, the collection of such "figure stones " by Neanderthals or earlier forms of man can not be proven himself.

The line of development of the Upper Palaeolithic small art goes back to the anatomically modern humans began years ago and about 70 000 in Middle Stone Age in South Africa with geometric patterns. Small figural art is instead known only from the European Aurignacian years ago about 40 000.

Scientific discussed objects

Altpaläolithische artistic expressions of Homo erectus may be asserted with rhythmically arranged stroke consequences on bone from the find site Bilzingsleben first time. These are - as they reflect a non- dedicated action - referred to as proto- art. This is in no case to figural representations.

Alleged Venusfigurinen are separated already postulated for the Lower Palaeolithic. The so-called Venus of Tan -Tan (Morocco ) is a surface find of the Hessian archaeologists Lutz Fiedler. The second object of this type is the Venus of Berekhat Ram (Israel). Both pieces are held by most professional scientists but for geofacts, that is, nature games. The oldest confirmed Venusfigurine is the Venus of Hohle Fels from the Aurignacian.

The possibility of manipulation by humans shows the so-called Mask of La Roche- Cotard. The object comes from a secured layer context of Moustériens, ie the time of the late Neanderthal. However, it is held by the majority of scientists for a randomly like a face representation acting sintering.

Controversial altpaläolithische cabaret in Germany

Publication status

The discussion about " small sculptures " flint brought the French archaeologist Jacques Boucher de Perthes hobby on in the first half of the 19th century. He pointed the found of him "figure stones " as the oldest evidence of human art and wrote about it in 1847, the book " Antiques Celtiques et Antédiluviennes ". He detracted for some decades the glory of the discovered also by him bifaces in the valley of the Somme, on the basis of the cultural level of the Acheuléens was erected. The prehistorians Hugo Obermaier (1877-1946) manifested itself initially, although critical of the findings, but accepted at the beginning of the 20th century the possible authenticity of the small works of art.

A new impetus to the discussion altpaläolithische cabaret in German language it was through publications of Walther Matthes. Matthes (1901-1997) studied in Berlin, Marburg and Budapest Pre-and Early History, history and historical geography and philosophy. He received his doctorate in Berlin in 1925. From 1925-1928, he was entrusted with the implementation of the country's archaeological recording of Ostprignitz and was, of 1928-1934 Head of the Upper Silesian Museum in Bytom country / Upper Silesia. From 1934-1969 he was Professor of " Germanic Antiquity " at the University of Hamburg. After his retirement in 1969, he dealt inter alia with the Extern Stones and wrote in 1982 about the book " Corvey and the external stones ".

Through the engineer Hans Oeljeschlager from Hamburg - Poppenbuettel Matthes 1957 attention to the Palaeolithic discovery of three alleged small sculptures made ​​of flint, the Oeljeschlager in the Alster in 1932/ 33, along with flint tools ( blades, scrapers, etc. ), had made and "face bricks " called. Matthes dated the finds from a moraine, which he considers genuine artifacts, in the crack ice age, ie in the period of the Neanderthals. As later Elisabeth Neumann - Gundrum (1981 ), with its large stone sculptures, Matthes believes that prehistoric humans in nature have corpus of forms illustrated by post-processing.

Herbert Kühn expressed in 1965 in agreement with the interpretations of Matthes: " These sculptures are still in the period 250000-150000 and apparently before. " (From Katholing, 2001: 73-74 ).

Also, the local historian Friedrich Schaefer dealt with alleged small sculptures and collected together with Matthes in 1958 further Paleolithic material at finding place in Pivitsheide Lipperland. In the following years Matthes put on an extensive collection of corresponding objects from northern Germany.

The collection of Matthes

Since official museums showed no interest in his collection, presented Matthes objects beginning of 1963 in 28 show cabinets in the rooms of his seminar at the University of Hamburg. A demand of the author Winfried Katholing (2001: 76) in 2000 resulted in the University of Hamburg, that the "figure stones " by Matthes were taken at his retirement as a private possession and nothing was known about the further fate. In 1969, Professor Matthes has a book on figural Eiszeitkunst titled ICE AGE ART IN THE NORTH SEA AREA eV in cooperation with the Association of Helgoland, history and culture of the German Bight, edited, which was printed in the Lower Elbe Verlag, Otter village.

Criticism

From the academic science interpretations of these objects are unanimously rejected as small sculptures and interprets the stones as natural products or stone implements, which have only incidental similarities with faces or animals. There are apparently no convincing evidence for a purposeful processing.

According to the scientist Rainer Michl (cited in Katholing, 2001: 76-77 ) from the University of Hamburg, was by the university no interest in the collection of Prof. Matthes, because it is " ... according to the unanimous opinion of the Stone Age and stone technology experts - clearly did not act artifacts but natural products .... The Matthesche view was probably taken as a curiosity for knowledge. "

Acceptance found the theses of Matthes by authors in the extreme right-wing Grabert -Verlag.

Other works on Palaeolithic small sculptures

A comprehensive discussion of the history of the " glacial small works of art " can be found at Katholing (2001: 71-78 and 150-156 ), the protagonist mentions the following:

• The Nazi mystics Karl Maria Wiligut, which was sponsored by Heinrich Himmler and his foundation " Ahnenerbe ", also had its own collection of prehistoric artefacts allegedly.
• Elisabeth Neumann - Gundrum represented in a photo book of 1981, the thesis that Paleolithic wholesale stone sculptures exist everywhere in Europe to rock formations that should show especially huge faces, in which the author 's motives " Zwiegesichts " and the " breath birth" again and again to have recognized. Also in this case, see the relevant specialist scientists rock formations as natural origin and the similarities with faces as pure random products (also Katholing 2001 expresses doubts about Neumann Gundrums theses in his book on the wholesale stone sculptures ). The form printed in Neumann Gundrums band opinion on the alleged detection of traces of processing at these rock formations is not from a suitably qualified archaeologists, but by an unknown Steinmetz.
• Dorothea Regber describes some supposedly originating from the Ice Age artifacts, which they called Hedgehog, mammoth and heart stones.
• Kurt E. Kocher discusses some supposed miniature art of Neanderthals and Homo erectus from Germany.
• The layman Hans Grams considers sculptures with head and facial representations on cobbles were manufactured by early humans.