The Apollo 11 Cave in Namibia is Home to Some of the Oldest Prehistoric Rock Art in Africa

In 1969, German archaeologist Wendt discovered seven small quartzite slabs decorated with charcoal drawings and ochre images of animals inside a cave in Namibia – some of the earliest transportable works of art discovered anywhere on Africa.

Apollo 11 features a lithic assemblage that is strikingly similar to that found at Hollow Rock Shelter and Umhlatuzana. Morphometrically, points from Apollo 11 tend to be longer, wider, and thicker than their counterparts from Hollow Rock Shelter.

What is Apollo 11 Cave?

The Apollo 11 Cave in Namibia contains some of the earliest known rock art. Discovered by German archaeologist W.E. Wendt in 1969 and named after Neil Armstrong’s spacecraft that carried him and others to the Moon that same year, this cave is believed to have hosted some of Paleolithic humans’ first examples of representational art as early as 25,000 years ago.

The seven stone slabs made of ochre and charcoal that contain images of animals are among the earliest depictions in Africa, dating back to Middle Stone Age deposits during Late Pleistocene times. Their remarkable preservation remains undisturbed to this day despite not yet having been identified at a species level; as early examples of form and representation that emphasize structural unity rather than momentary or subjective views.

These stones represent some of the earliest and best-preserved examples of Paleolithic art. Constructed using primitive tools made of stone, and using the process of engraving or carving designs into rocks’ surfaces. Finally, painted with natural pigment made from crushed snail shells or mica called ocher, while charcoal likely served to define figure outlining.

Apollo 11 Cave has yielded other signs of human activity, such as arrowheads from the Later Stone Age and bones belonging to residents who may have inhabited it at one time or another. Some paintings found here may also have been altered over time.

Southern Africa boasts one of the world’s richest collections of early Stone Age rock art, yet dating it can be challenging without organic material such as charcoal that can be radiocarbon dated. At Apollo 11 Cave there was charcoal associated with buried stone slabs which allowed their inscriptions to be radiocarbon dated using this method.

Carbon dating indicates that Apollo 11 Cave’s slabs date to 25,000 BCE, making them among the earliest artistic inscriptions ever seen in Africa and marking an important step in both rock art’s evolution and anatomically modern human development. Yet they fall far short of other sites with drawings such as Blombos Cave Engravings or Diepkloof Eggshell Engravings which both date to 70,000 BCE.

What is the Apollo 11 Stones?

The Apollo 11 Cave can be found in Namibia’s Huns Mountains and contains some of the earliest examples of Paleolithic art. Here seven stone slabs decorated with charcoal and ochre depict simple animal figures that may represent some of the oldest examples of mobile figurative art on record.

The discovery of stone slabs at Apollo 11 Cave was an important archaeological find that brought global recognition to this site. Since then, it has become one of the key MSA and LSA research hubs in southern Africa as it contains one of the longest Middle Stone Age (MSA) sequences ever known on this continent containing all major cultural units within an archaeological stratigraphic unit that is less than two metres thick.

This sequence provides ample organic and mineral evidence of hunter-gatherer settlement of this area during Late Stone Age and Later Stone Age periods of history, specifically from Late Stone Age through Later Stone Age epochs. The sequence also offers evidence for tools, art, and organic finds from this time period such as fragments of an ostrich egg shell flask with yolk, as well as set of 26-notched rib bones which serve as early examples of distinct morphological forms with emphasis placed upon structural unity of an object.

Sub-Saharan Africa’s oldest transportable art can also be found here, with one piece dating back 60,000 years – an ancient stylized quadruped painted onto slate from Late Stone Age layer at this cave dated at 60,000 years – proving that rock art existed as early as 60,000 years ago in Africa! This represents an understanding of animal skeletal characteristics and behaviour, possibly used for identification purposes.

Rock art at this site was indirectly dated through carbon dating of charcoal found in sediment that covered them; carbon dating established that this charcoal belonged to approximately 25,500 BC, making them some of the earliest examples of sub-Saharan African figurative art ever discovered.

Why is Apollo 11 Cave important?

Cave art such as that found at Apollo 11 Cave is renowned as evidence of early human artistic expression; yet many may not realize its value for understanding prehistoric art in Africa. Recent carbon dating of charcoal found among painted slabs at this rock shelter located within Namibia’s Huns Mountains (today part of Ai-Ais Richtersveld Transfrontier Park) carbon dated it back 25,000 years BCE; making this rock art, locally referred to as Goachanas or Kopjes in Afrikaans) the oldest scientifically dated representational art ever discovered (see timeline of history here).

Seven slabs of gray-brown quartzite featuring animal depictions are among the earliest examples of transportable art and are among the oldest dated art in Southern Africa. Dating back to 28,000-19,000 BP (end of Middle Stone Age), this rock art assemblage may have been created by Khoekhoe herders on trading expeditions traveling through this area.

What makes the Apollo 11 Cave truly intriguing is that its stones displaying animal imagery were not simply carved; they were painted using pigments such as ochre and ostrich egg yolk, suggesting humans already had the technology for producing paint 100,000 years ago. Unfortunately, species identification has proven challenging at the Apollo 11 Cave; images have been identified as felines, bovids and possibly one or both zebra or giraffe species.

Beyond rock art, excavations at this site have unearthed Iron Age pottery fragments and other lithic artifacts, such as two rib bones with notches that appear as rows of circles along their length – likely caused by spearpoints. One rib bone has 26 notches while the other had 12.

Where is Apollo 11 Cave located?

The Apollo 11 Cave or Goachanas Rockshelter, is located in Namibia’s Ai-Ais Richtersveld Transfrontier Park and was discovered in 1969 by Wolfgang Erich Wendt, who then named it after NASA’s Apollo 11 moon landing for which it is named in recognition. Within this cave he discovered seven palm-sized slabs of gray-brown quartzite decorated with charcoal and ochre images depicting animals; these slabs date back to between 25,500 BCE and 27,500 BCE!

The cave etchings represent one of Africa’s oldest examples of animal-themed figurative art and are also one of the first pieces depicting modern humans with anatomically accurate features.

Archaeological evidence points towards San hunters-gatherers being among the first inhabitants in this region, likely hunter-gatherers and gatherers alike. Etched symbols on stone slabs likely created by San artist-carvers between 49,000 to 1,700 BCE; this corresponds with when some of southern Africa’s first representational arts like Blombos Cave paintings and Diepkloof eggshell engravings were produced.

By the time of Apollo 11 Cave drawings, hunter-gatherers had moved into the region’s arid regions to herd cattle and sheep. The first evidence of occupation at this site dates back 24,000 BP when stone blades and flake tips were found nearby; later it became home for Khoekhoe herders as pottery fragments bearing geometric patterns have been found there.

Apollo 11 Cave boasts more than just painted slabs; it also contains numerous stone tools fashioned from various materials. While most are simple blades or flakes made from stone, others feature intricately designed shapes like pointed flakes and scrapers. Furthermore, some of these artifacts were constructed using materials not found locally, suggesting they may have been brought by traders to Apollo 11 Cave.

Apollo 11 Cave features an exceptionally similar lithic assemblage to other sites in the Ai-Ais region, such as Hollow Rock Shelter and Umhlatuzana Cave. Morphometric analyses suggest that points crafted at each of these three locations were created by one artist, though some at Apollo 11 appear longer, narrower or thicker than at Umhlatuzana or Hollow Rock Shelter.