W-Sign Prehistoric Symbol
Curvilinear abstract motif
in Upper Paleolithic cave art
CONTENTS
- What is a W-Sign?
- How Were They Produced?
- Description of a W-Sign
- How Prevalent is the W-Sign in Caves?
- Why do Abstract Signs Matter?
- What is the Meaning of W-Signs?
- Related Articles
- References
What is a W-Sign?
In prehistoric art, the curvilinear, polylobate "W-sign" is one of 32 abstract symbols, documented by Genevieve von Petzinger, which were used during the era of Upper Paleolithic art (40,000-10,000 BC).
The sign is comparatively rare compared to more common symbols, like dots or ovals and various arrangements of lines.
How Were They Produced?
"W-signs" were made just like any other cave art of the time. Either, they were drawn or painted - usually in red (ochre) or black (manganese dioxide) - or else they were incised on a stone surface with a sharp tool.
Signs also appeared on items of mobiliary art - see, for example, the Diepkloof Ostrich Shell Engravings (60,000 BC).
Description of a W-Sign
As the name suggests, a "W-sign" resembles the lower-case version of the W-letter. It can be created with a single flowing stroke, depending on the surface being decorated.
A number of W-signs may be connected together and form strips.
The etymology of the W-shaped pictograph, and how it came to be used in paleolithic art, is a matter of guesswork. Was it inspired by the female form, or by features of the terrain? Or is it no more than a natural hand movement?
Whatever its provenance, it resonated with Stone Age artists and their audience.
How Prevalent is the W-Sign in Caves?
W-signs are present in about 5 percent of French caves.
They were first documented by Michel Lorblanchet in 1984, and later referred to by Marc Azéma and Jean Clottes in their study of Chauvet Cave, where there are seventeen W-sign types present, notably on the Signs Panel on the right-hand wall of the Salle du Fond (End Chamber).
These symbols are also one of the latest sign-types documented by Petzinger, who is in the process of compiling a master database of signs used in Franco-Cantabrian art and beyond.
According to Petzinger, W-signs can be found in at least seven paleolithic caves in France: one dating to the period of Aurignacian culture, one to the Gravettian, two to the Solutrean and three to the Magdalenian (3 sites).
They are divided geographically between four sites in the Lot, two in SE France, and a single site in the foothills of the Pyrenees.
Apart from Chauvet, these sites are likely to include Pech-Merle Les Cuzoul-des-Brasconies, and Cougnac Cave in the Lot, Ebbou in the Ardèche, and Niaux Cave in the Pyrenees.
Why do Abstract Signs Matter?
- Because they outnumber animal paintings by 2 to 1. They are present in caves, on open-air rock surfaces, and on portable items. Such widespread use shows the symbols meant something of great importance to their makers.
- Abstract signs account for a significant slice of the world's oldest art, dating as far back as the Lower Paleolithic. Among the oldest markings are cupules, zigzags, parallel lines, half-circles and crosshatches, were produced by Homo erectus, our distant ancestor, as well as Homo neanderthalensis.
See, for instance, the zigzags on the Trinil Shell Engravings, the parallel lines on the Bilzingsleben Engravings and the crosshatch pattern on the Blombos Cave Engravings in South Africa. - Compared to animal paintings, abstract symbols have great potential for graphic communication. After all, being non-naturalistic, these abstract motifs must surely symbolize something - some idea or message. Anthropologists study cave signs in order to unlock the story of how early modern man developed symbolic thinking, which is regarded as a key indicator of cognitive progress.
- Some researchers also consider it possible that certain complex signs are actually a primitive form of writing, citing the panel of The Inscription in the Cave of La Pasiega in Spain.
At the end of the day, abstract symbols are important because they shed light on early human life. The use and proliferation of cave signs serve as footprints that reveal the links (in trade, raw materials, and hunting) maintained by early hunter-gatherer communities, and how life evolved for our ancestors.
What is the Meaning of W-Signs?
No one knows. We don't know who created them, or why. We don't know how these and other signs relate to animal paintings, with whom they are often associated.
We don't know how they relate to the ceremonies conducted inside the caves. We know hardly anything about the cultural context surrounding them.
Of course, this doesn't stop scientists from speculating.
- Some say they are prototype writing systems, which Artificial Intelligence will eventually decipher.
- Some point to the fact that signs are nearly always associated with animal figures and have nothing to do with symbolism.
- Some say both the signs and the animals were intended to convey ideas
- Some see them simply as commentary - either on the cave art, the archaeoacoustics, or the ceremonies in the cave itself.
See also our article on the Purpose and Meaning of Cave Art.
Related Articles
For details of other rare cave signs and symbols, see the following articles:
- Scalariform
Ladder-shaped symbol - Segmented Cruciform
Cross without a centre - Serpentiform
Snake-like sign - Spanish Tectiform
Big quadrangular symbol - Spiral Symbol
Any spiral-shaped form - Tectiform
Roof-shaped sign - Triangle
Regular geometric symbol - Unciform
Hook-shaped symbol - Y-Sign
Shaped like the letter - Zigzag Sign
Shaped as normal
References
(1) "The First Signs: Unlocking the Mysteries of the World's Oldest Symbols." Genevieve von Petzinger. Atria; Illustrated edition (28 Mar. 2017) ISBN-10: 1476785503. ISBN-13: 978-1476785509.
(2) "Traces of Finger Marks and Drawings in the Chauvet Cave (Salle du Fond)." Azéma, M. and Clottes, J., 2008. In International Newsletter on Rock Art (52): 1–5, Comite International d’Art Rupestre, Foix, France. ISSN: 1022-3282.
(3) Lorblanchet, Michel, 1984. "Grotte du Faux-Monnayeurs" in L'Art des Cavernes. Atlas des Grottes Ornees Paleolithiques Francaises, A. Leroi-Gourhan, ed., 457-458, Ministere de la Culture: Imprimerie Nationale, Paris, France. ISBN-10: 2110808179 ISBN-13: 978-2110808172.