The Adorant


The oldest known human picture is a very small ivory plate with an humanoid engraving on one side. It was found 1979 in the Geißenklösterle near Blaubeuren. The material is mammoth ivory and it was dated 35,000 years old. This is 2,000 years older than the Subterranealionheaded figurine from the Stadel im Hohlenstein in the RegionLone valley.

The Adorant has long been called the oldest human sculpture ever found in Europe. The reason for this is simply that the lion man was originally dated to an age of 32,000 years, while the adorant was dated to 35,000 years. In the meantime, the dates have been revised upwards, but an age of between 35,000 and 40,000 years is given for both, as well as for the Venus figure discovered in 2008. In general, the finds from Lonetal and Blautal are the oldest known figurative works of art known to mankind, only the cave paintings are even older. This is also the reason why Lonetal and Blautal were included on the UNESCO WHL in 2017.

A figure is depicted, carved as a flat relief and holding its arms outstretched upwards at an angle. The legs are also turned outwards. The figure is obviously male, as it has unusually large genitals. The posture is interpreted as a ritual gesture, although it is not certain whether it is a praying, dancing person or a shaman performing a ritual act. Hence, the name Adorant or worshipper; the posture was later used to describe people worshipping something. This depiction is definitely unusual. Figures with comparable depictions were not found until 20,000 years later in the Magdalenian period.

The figurine was most certainly worn as an amulet and has mysterious engravings on the back. The meaning of these engravings is still unclear.

"Orion, in astronomy, major constellation..., named for the Greek mythological hunter. Orion is one of the most conspicuous constellations and contains many bright stars." Encyclopædia Britannica

A recent work by Michael A. Rappenglück interprets the amulet as a kind of star map. The figure is interpreted as a visualization of the constellation Orion. The constellation Orion is represented by a human (male) figure standing with bent knees until today. Hunter with weapons in general. Even the huge genitals are explained by a group of stars. The proportions are not completely correct, but they fit the location of the stars 35,000 years ago, which we are able to reconstruct. The dots on the back could be used to aim at the stars and thus orientate using the stars of the Orion. The amulet could be interpreted as an early predecessor of the compass.

The Adorant, ivory carving of a human from the Aurignacien.

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