The new age estimate, reported in a paper in Nature, is based on dating mineral crusts that formed on top of the artwork—meaning the stencil itself must be at least that old, and could be older. If confirmed, it edges past previously reported minimum ages for some of the world’s earliest known cave wall artworks, reshaping how researchers think about the origins of symbolic culture in the deep past.
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Dr Adhi Agus Oktaviana examining a hand print painting in the Liang Metanduno cave, Sulawesi. (Maxime Aubert/Nature)
The Cave, the Hand, and the “Claw-like” Fingertips
What makes the Liang Metanduno stencil especially intriguing is its shape. Researchers say some fingertips appear intentionally narrowed or “pointed,” creating an unusual, almost claw-like look that has also been seen at other Sulawesi sites - suggesting this wasn’t a one-off accident, but part of a local artistic tradition.
In reporting on the find, The Guardian notes that one criticism is whether the pointed effect truly reflects deliberate modification or could be the result of movement during pigment application. Either way, even a simple hand stencil carries weight in the debate about when humans began leaving symbolic marks on their world - and who, exactly, was doing it.
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Professor Maxime Aubert working in the cave. (Ahdi Agus Oktaviana/Nature)
How the Scientists Dated the Stencil
Dating cave art is notoriously difficult because pigments often lack organic material for radiocarbon dating. In this case, the research team dated calcite deposits that had formed over the pigment layer using uranium-series techniques - providing a minimum age for the hand stencil beneath.
Associated Press reports that the study focused on tan-colored handprints, made by blowing pigment over hands placed on the cave wall, and that other images in the same general region - such as animals and figures - turned out to be far younger, with some dated to around 4,000 years ago. That contrast hints that people returned to these caves repeatedly over vast spans of time, leaving multiple layers of meaning behind.
Dr Shinatria Adhityatama working in the cave. (Maxime Aubert/Nature)
Who Made It - Homo sapiens, Denisovans, or Someone Else?
A key question remains: whose hand was it? The Nature authors note there is “no obvious method” to identify the human group responsible for the stencil, complicated by evidence that Sulawesi hosted archaic hominins before the arrival of modern humans. Still, the paper argues the apparent technical and stylistic choices (like the narrowed fingertips) make it plausible the stencil belongs to Homo sapiens.
Associated Press likewise notes that it’s not yet clear whose hands made the prints, raising the possibility of Denisovans or modern humans moving through the region. And if Sulawesi’s oldest cave wall art really sits at the dawn of the long migrations toward Sahul (Ice Age Australia–New Guinea), it strengthens the case that people carried a mature artistic culture with them as they crossed seas and islands.
For readers who follow Sulawesi’s deep-time story, this fits a wider pattern: the island has already produced evidence of very ancient human presence, and later finds - like a 25,000-year-old jawbone - show just how much remains unknown about the people who lived among Wallacea’s caves and forests.
Top image: Narrowed finger hand stencils from Leang Jarie, Maros, Sulawesi
Source: Ahdi Agus Oktaviana/ Nature
By Gary Manners
References
Sample, I., 2026. Hand shape in Indonesian cave may be world’s oldest known rock art. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jan/21/hand-shape-indonesia-cave-rock-art-67800-years-old
Aubert, M., 2026. Rock art from at least 67,800 years ago in Sulawesi. Available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09968-y
Ramakrishnan, A., 2026. These handprints may be the oldest cave art found yet. PBS NewsHour. Available at: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/these-handprints-may-be-the-oldest-cave-art-found-yet?fbclid=IwY2xjawPe-8dleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeXTnJWuxiszjaq-4mvbhzmYMl0sKpJG9rqrdnLr5gaRna863fp2FAu9iv4lM_aem_0cWHqHsXoThxGfOdhKuLjg
