Putting a date on ancient art can be tough, and resolving the list of ingredients in the paint is particularly difficult. Now, for the first time, researchers have used DNA analysis to identify the animal tissue in 4,000-year-old rock paintings. A group led by Marian Hyman and Marvin W. Rowe of Texas A&M University examined figures, including this one, found near the Pecos River in Texas. By analyzing fragments of DNA preserved under a layer of minerals, the team discovered that the pigments contain material from an ungulate, or even-toed hoofed mammal--ruling out egg albumen or yolk, which had been suggested. In that area of Texas, such animals were most likely bison or deer; the scientists are conducting further tests to determine which of the two was used. The work may ultimately help archaeologists understand the images: Was deer tissue used to depict only deer? Was painting part of a hunting ritual? The findings, of course, may just add to the mystery.--Sasha Nemecek
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN July 1995 Volume 273 Number 1 Page 17
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