>Glenn wrote:
>
><<I agree that there is much more to humanity than building things.But I can
>not observe those extra things even in you. That is, I can not observe your
>inner states nor can you observe mine.>>
>
>But you can observe physical evidence of inner states. That is why you think
>that a flute is evidence of humanness--it is evidence of an inner musical
>sense.
>
absolutely. But lacking physical evidence how is one to determine the mental
state? You can't.
>I believe the greatest evidence for the sudden appearance of biblical
>humanity is shaman-art. It is so unlike anything that came before it, and so
>sudden and rapid in appearance. For me, the inference is clear.
Shaman art may represent the onset of the use of psychoactive substances. But
should that be the mark of humanity???? That Science News article you cite
says,
"In preparation for their otherworldly commutes, shamans typically take steps
to induce trances. These techniques include dancing, isolation in dark
places, rapid breathing, or the ingestion of hallucenogenic plants.
"In the first stage of a trance, the shaman perceives any handful of
basic geometric forms."~B. Bower, Visions on the Rocks," Science News, 150,
Oct. 5, 1996 p. 216
Often these shapes are phosphenes, which are shapes which seem to be
hard-wired into our brains. Look at this,
"As reported elsewhere, a particular similarity was found between
scribblings of young children and such phosphenes induced electrically in
adults. According to about 300,000 drawings and painting from pre-school
children of American, Chinese, French, English and Negro origin, collected by
one of us (R.K.) in the Golden Gate Nursery School, San Francisco, it would
seem that, at this age, such 'outlinings in geometrical style' play an
important part in the development of a child's expression in drawing or
painting."~Rhoda Kellogg, M. Knoll and J. Kugler," Form-similarity between
Phosphenes of Adults and pre-School Children's Scribblings." Nature, Dec. 11,
1965, vol 208, pp 1129-1130, p. 1129-1130
**
"If we compare the basic form groups of the Munich 'phosphene-Linnaeus' (first
two columns on the left of Table 1), with those of the San Francisco
'scribblings-Linnaeus' we see that nearly 90 percent of the phosphene forms
can be found in the 'scribblings-Linnaeus', although they were collected
independently from each other. We note, for example, that they have the
following figures in common: arcs, radials (crosses), waves, lines, combined
patterns, circles, dots, odd figures, quadrangles, spirals, poles, triangles
and 'cherries'. Lattices and fingers do not appear in the 'scribblings-
Linnaeus', but are scribbled occasionally."~Rhoda Kellogg, M. Knoll and J.
Kugler," Form-similarity between Phosphenes of Adults and pre-School
Children's Scribblings." Nature, Dec. 11, 1965, vol 208, pp 1129-1130, p. 1130
Look at the picture on page 217 and you will see several phosphenes, arcs,
wavy lines, quadrangles. The shaman figure with the upraise hands is drawn
very similarly to the self portraits of the Tallensi in Africa when they were
first taught to draw two dimensional pictures. (see ~Meyer Fortes, "Tallensi
Children's Drawings," in Barbara Lloyd and John Gay, eds. Universals of Human
Thought (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981),pp. 46-70, p. 68)
>Is there
>anything to indicate a gradual development of this sense? No. If not gradual,
>then what?
There is lots of evidence for art prior and even similar motifs. That Shaman
article tries to say that art began 33,000 years ago or so.
Bower notes that,
"...six geometric forms commonly appear as images in the first phase of a
trance state: grids or lattices, parallel lines, dots, zigzags, concentric
circles or U-shaped lines, and meandering lines." (Bower, op. cit, p. 216)
Note the similarities with the above. and now for old evidence of these
motifs.
90-100,000 years ago. Prolom II
"Thus several artefacts from Prolom II closely
resemble well-known objects of the Middle Palaeolithic in the motif of
parallel incisions. The cave also produced two artefacts with evidence of the
symbolic art of Neanderthal Man that were, as far as we are aware, up to now
unknown. We have in mind here the bones with fan-like disposed engravings
starting from approximately the same point. Unfortunately, neither the
triangular fragment of long bone from the first layer nor the fragment of
Saiga phalange from the third layer was completely preserved, so it is
difficult to be sure about the original appearance of the engravings."~Vadim
N. Stpanchuk, "Prolom II, A Middle Palaeolithic Cave Site in the Eastern
Crimea with Non-Utilitarian Bone Artefacts," Proceedings of the Prehistoric
Society 59, 1993, pp 17-37, p. 36
**
Neanderthal art
"The horse canine with five deep engraved lines finds parallels in
several ornaments of Middle Palaeolithic age. It is especially similar to the
object that was discovered in the late Middle Palaeolithic layers of La Quina.
The perforated fox canine from La Quina and the engraved horse canine from
Prolom II have elements of working (perforations and engravings) that (this
time in combination) were widely applied in the post-Middle Palaeolithic epoch
on personal ornaments made from animal teeth.
"The use-wear analyst A. K. Fillipov, a specialist on problems of bone
working in the Palaeolithic, has confirmed the artificial character of the
engravings on all artefacts described above, and also admits as probable a
technological explanation of the cuts which can be seen on the canine, i.e.
its splitting into pieces."~Vadim N. Stpanchuk, "Prolom II, A Middle
Palaeolithic Cave Site in the Eastern Crimea with Non-Utilitarian Bone
Artefacts," Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 59, 1993, pp 17-37, p. 36
**
Bacho Kiro-43000 years ago
"...the Bulgarian cave of Bacho Kiro
has a Mousterian bone-fragment with a zigzag motif engraved on it; while a
Mousterian layer at Molodova-I, USSR, more than 40,000 years old, has a
mammoth shoulder-blade decorated with little pits, patches of colour, and
notches that form complex patterns including cruciform and rectangular figures
in which some Soviet scholars have seen the outline of an animal. It will be
recalled that a baboon fibula with 29 parallel engraved notches has been found
at Border Cave in southern Africa, and dates to 35,000-37,500 years ago. When
faced with examples of this kind, some scholars believe a genuinely continuous
tradition of marking is represented, while others see them simply as sporadic
recurrences of simple motifs."~Paul G. Bahn and Jean Vertut, Images in the
Ice, (Leichester: Windward, 1988), p. 80
Bacho Kiro has also produced a mousterian(neanderthal age) bone fragment which
has a zigzag motif. this is used exetensively in the Upper paleolithic after
30,000 years.
Bilzingsleben-300,000 years ago (Homo erectus site). Bhimketka believed to be
of similar age; Jinmium 75-176,000 years ago.
"Other evidence has appeared from the same period, such as bones from
the open-air site of Bilzingsleben, Germany, which bear a series of what seem
to be decorative parallel incisions. Where rock art is concerned, two
petroglyphs--a large circular cupule and a pecked meandering line--have been
found in Auditorium Cave at Bhimbetka, India, covered by an acheulian
occupation layer (probably several hundred thousand years old). If both this
example and Jinmium are valid, they will confirm the suspicioun of many
scholars that cupules and other simple motifs are the oldest surviving rock
markings in many parts of the world.Traditional theories that art began in the
Upper Palaeolithic, or with modern humans, let alone in Europe or even the
Dordogne, are now utterly discredited."~Paul G. Bahn, "Further Back Down
Under," Nature, Oct 17, 1996, p. 577-578, p. 578
Jim,Trust me on this. Art did not start in the upper paleolithic as you
suggest. I don't care what the popular press says, art began outside of Europe
and long, long ago
glenn
Foundation,Fall and Flood
http://members.gnn.com/GRMorton/dmd.htm