Sangkulirang Rock Art

The Sangkulirang-Mangkalihat karst on the east coast of Kalimantan holds a body of cave painting - hand stencils, human figures and animals in ochre - that has changed the accepted account of early art. Uranium-series dating published in 2018 put a painting of a large animal, most likely a banteng, at a minimum of around forty thousand years, making it at the time the oldest known figurative image anywhere, older than the European cave art it was long assumed to postdate; hand stencils in the same system are of comparable age. Work at Sulawesi sites has since produced comparable and older results. The caves are remote, in a karst under pressure from cement and coal concessions, and access requires permits, expedition logistics and guides; casual visits are not possible.

Highlights

• Ochre hand stencils and figures - the painted panels in the karst caves.
• A 40,000-year figurative image - the animal painting dated in 2018.
• A rewritten chronology - evidence that figurative art was not a European first.
• Karst under concession pressure - cement and coal interests around the caves.

When to go

May to September, and only with arranged access. Four days.

Before you go

This is not a visitable site in the ordinary sense - permits, expedition logistics and guides are required, and most caves are closed. Do not attempt to reach the paintings independently.

Nearby

Berau and Tanjung Redeb are south; the Derawan islands are offshore.