Researchers studying ancient art in the canyons of southwestern Texas (USA) have discovered that some of North America’s most famous rock paintings are far older than previously believed.
According to new findings, the paintings in Pecos Canyon, along the United States–Mexico border, were created around 6,000 years ago. These paintings provide evidence of an astonishingly long and continuous artistic tradition passed down through generations in ancient hunter-gatherer societies.
A university team led by Professor Carolyn E. Boyd reported the findings in the journal Science Advances. Their work redefines the understanding of early ritual art in North America.
What Did the Researchers Discover?
In Pecos Canyon, located near the Rio Grande, hundreds of limestone rock shelters are scattered throughout the area. The surfaces in these natural niches are remarkably smooth—ideal for painting. Numerous frescoes have been preserved here, likely marking places where rituals and ceremonies took place thousands of years ago.
Ancient artists painted people, animals, and abstract symbols on the walls, using red ochre, black pigments, and yellow mineral dyes. Some frescoes cover entire rock faces with numerous, carefully arranged elements, indicating purposeful composition.
Dating Rock Paintings is Quite Challenging
For a long time, dating ancient rock art has been one of the most challenging tasks for archaeologists. The problem is that mineral pigments don’t contain organic material, so radiocarbon dating cannot directly determine their age. However, prehistoric artists often mixed those pigments with organic substances, such as plant resins or animal fats, which helped the paint adhere to the stone.
Those binding agents left microscopic traces of carbon. By dating that carbon, researchers could estimate when the paint was first applied, as reported by Arkeonews.
In addition to radiocarbon dating, the team used stratigraphy, a method that determines age based on the layering of materials. Stratigraphic analysis helped scientists understand the sequence in which colors and images were applied.
By analyzing 12 locations with these methods, the team found that the Pecos Canyon paintings likely began between 5,760 and 5,385 years ago. The tradition continued until roughly 1,370 to 1,035 years ago. That means this extraordinarily long and continuous artistic practice spans about 4,000 to 4,800 years.
Despite changes in climate and material culture, the core symbols and themes of the paintings remained consistent over time. More than 200 frescoes repeatedly feature the same images and motifs, suggesting a coherent worldview among the people who made them.
In societies without writing, repeating stories and rituals played a crucial role in preserving knowledge. These rock paintings helped convey beliefs, myths, moral norms, and ceremonial practices to later generations.
The canyon’s dry climate, stable temperatures, and limited sunlight under rock overhangs contributed to the preservation of colors for millennia. The frescoes remain vulnerable, however, to sudden floods, smoke, and human contact.
