Why This 7,000-Year-Old Painting Terrified Archaeologists

400 years ago, Europe's brightest minds argued endlessly about the nature of humankind. Hobbes pictured life before civilization as nasty, brutish, and short. Locke thought humans were blank slates, molded by the environment. Rousseau insisted we were peaceful in our origins, corrupted only by society. Three men, three visions of humanity. But long before these philosophers sat down with their quills, prehistoric artists had already depicted their lives on cave walls. And while much of this art celebrates animals, hunts, or spirits, scattered among them we find something darker. Images of battles, of murder, and of bodies riddled with spears. These images are found across continents, painted by cultures who never knew each other, but who chose to record the same thing, human violence. In a previous video, we mentioned these examples showing violence during the Ice Age. There are a number of examples from southern France showing human bodies full of spears. This was a time long before civilization or even agriculture. Make no mistake about it, these were the idyllic Ice Age hunter-gatherers. And it appears violence occasionally occurred. But today, let's look at a more complex story of when Neolithic farmers meet the indigenous hunter-gatherers. Our story begins in the Levantine region of Spain. Here, found in rock shelters lie some of the most haunting and unmistakable depictions of violence in prehistoric art. Dating back between 4 to 7 thousand years ago, these paintings belonged to a different world than the more famous Ice Age cave paintings. By 7 thousand years ago, the ice had subsided, and agriculture was gradually making it into the region. This caused people in the fertile regions to settle down into denser settlements. These populations valued their land and had a reason to fight for it. And on walls of stone, they painted exactly what Hobbes described – brutish, organized conflict. At the Les Dagues rock shelter, we find one of the most striking examples of violence. Two groups of warriors going head to head in a deadly battle. You can almost feel the chaos – the whistle of arrows, the pounding of feet. On the right, an aggressive group of 18 warriors seem to be sprinting towards their enemies. On the left, a smaller group of 11 are seemingly fighting while retreating. The warriors are mostly armed with bows. Some carry extra arrows in hand and others seem to have quivers. This is very reminiscent of tribal warriors in ethnographic accounts – large, loosely organized groups duking it out. Attacks only usually happen when one group safely outnumbers the other. The small group seems to be just trying to survive the onslaught. This masterpiece is far from the only one in early Neolithic Spain. An even more famous example comes from the El Rore rock shelter. A painting shows a confrontation with at least seven archers. It appears to depict three archers encircled by a larger group of four. The figures are painted so elegantly while being involved in something so sinister. At El Serral, we see a similar scene of ambush. This time, only two people are surrounded by seven archers. This is very characteristic of intergroup violence in traditional societies. At another site, we find something even more disturbing. Veritable firing squads are seen unleashing on victims. One consists of five archers and another up to 18. In their path are fallen figures. They lie dead, turned into Swiss cheese by arrows. The aftermath is very reminiscent of Upper Paleolithic examples. Bodies lying lifeless impaled on all sides. The archers seem to be raising their bows in victory. Neolithic Spain was absolutely metal, but our evidence doesn't stop there. Another example can be found at the El Chapo rock shelter. Here was another complex scene which may depict violence. At least 12 figures are seen attacking a much smaller force. The figures in question seem to be armed with boomerangs. Boomerangs were once used all over the world and it is possible that this is what this depicts. In Australia, they were often deadly weapons of war, capable of cracking skulls and possibly even decapitating people. At the rock shelter of Mola Remagia, we see 60 individuals and two opposing bands engaged in battle. These figures are painted with much more detail than seen in other Spanish caves. You can see the bravado of the bowmen, leaning forward puffing their chests. Interestingly, the men appear to have headdresses on, which is only seen in paintings of warfare. Perhaps it was a part of their war costume. Again, the warriors only have bows and arrows, no spears or clubs. In one panel, five men are standing next to each other advancing in a line. This hints at some kind of organized discipline, but another panel reminds us just how senseless warfare can be. A brutal ambush is depicted, the victims unarmed and taken by surprise. It is honestly astonishing these artists were able to capture these breathtaking scenes in such detail. Most of them are struck in the chest, and enduring extreme pain. There are other isolated examples of individuals impaled with multiple arrows. One depicts a man falling, and another outstretched and expired. Another image shows what looks like a person carrying a limp person in their arms. It is sad to think that this very person who made this painting may have been the one carrying their lost loved one. It proves that these paintings were personal and highly emotional. Cave and rock art is often deeply symbolic and ceremonial, but these paintings seem to depict real events. For archaeologists, these examples are clear evidence of warfare, and possibly even genocide. Genocides are typically the result of long-standing ethnic tensions, and one site from northern Spain may be direct evidence of ethnic tensions between farmers and hunter-gatherers reaching a fever pitch. As many of you know, Europe was home to hunter-gatherers who gradually got replaced and assimilated with the arrival of farming from the Near East. Farmers and their technology spread and took the best land for themselves. This undoubtedly caused clashes between these populations, and for a Neolithic farmer, the hunter-gatherers were the last people you'd want as your enemies. Remarkably, the site of Elstrakks suggests that Neolithic farmers were massacred. The evidence is brutal. In some cases, flint arrowheads penetrate through the skull, traveling through the brain and lodging on the other side. This suggests that some shots may have been made at close range, or the bowls of these hunters were extremely powerful. Stone-tipped arrows are much deadlier than they may seem. For one, flint is harder than steel, and that's why it's scratched against steel to create fires. So when you hit flint against steel, it's actually superheated particles of steel that fly off and start fires. But furthermore, flint is also just as sharp if not sharper than the finest steel blades. When you nab flint, it fractures along conchoidal planes. These planes end in smooth edges that can be only a dozen atoms thick. A nabbed obsidian is around ten times sharper than the sharpest steel edges, while flint can be just about as sharp. Point being, a stone-tipped arrow is far deadlier than you may have ever imagined. They lacerate flesh with ease, and if they impact bone and shatter, then you are even more screwed. Truly diabolical weapons. Recently in eastern Spain, around 300 individuals were discovered in a collapsed rock shelter. Their own people had buried them, but at least 13 had arrow wounds. Around 60% of these people actually survived their arrow wounds, as seen by new bone growth. This includes an arrow embedded in a rib, an arrow to the forearm, and even a guy with an arrow in the skull. Though some of these people survived their arrow wounds, I don't know if you'd even want to considering the pain. Moving back to Elstrakks, we have evidence that all five of the adults were fatally shot in the cranium. But furthermore, some adults and the children show evidence of blunt force trauma. The forensic evidence suggests the bodies were violently smashed with clubs after their death, indicating true hatred. It appears this was the result of a sudden event, a massacre. These people were clearly Neolithic farmers. They had ceramics, and evidence of domesticated animals were found alongside them. Furthermore, one of the adult male victims has a mtDNA haplogroup of N1A1A1, which was common in early Neolithic Central Europe, but previously unknown in Spain. But this site brings up more nuanced questions. We know that other Neolithic migrants that made it to coastal Spain quickly made mixed populations with the indigenous hunter-gatherers. So why would it be any different at Elstrakks? It may have been due to where these people were geographically. They were very far inland, high up in the mountains. The hunter-gatherers living here may have not been as welcoming as the coastal populations. It is even possible that these Neolithic people did not actually live in this valley. Rather, they just spent the summer months grazing their livestock in the Pyrenees and migrated back south for winter. Naturally, this could lead to tension, as the hunter-gatherers may have not been very familiar with these herders and seen them as a threat. Perhaps they even hunted their livestock, quickly sparking conflict. Whatever the case, clearly these farmers messed with the wrong people. There are two main hypotheses to consider. The first hypothesis is that this was a clash between the indigenous hunter-gatherers and the newly arrived Neolithic farmers. The foragers may have seen the farmers moving into their hunting grounds and reacted violently to defend their territory. The second hypothesis is that this was actually a fight between two Neolithic groups themselves. In this case, the conflict may have started over land rights on a plateau rich in resources. When we look at conflicts like this more generally, certain motives are almost universal across time and culture. Disputes over territory, raids to steal possessions like livestock, food, or even people are a common source of conflict. But it's important to note a difference from many modern conflicts. In the past, even when neighboring groups clashed again and again, they often knew each other well and even shared cultural ties. Because of this, the complete extermination of a rival group was rare, even if violence was common. One thing is certain, the level of violence carried out was extreme. Forensic evidence suggests something beyond simple killing. It points to what experts call overkill or even a killing frenzy. From the perspective of a criminal profiler, this wasn't a random encounter that spiraled out of control. Everything about the violence suggests it was deliberate, systematic, and carefully executed. The motive must have been serious. Still, despite the evidence, we cannot say for certain which scenario is true. And when we look at the bigger picture, El's Trox is part of a much older and much larger story. Let's take a break from the video so I can make a huge announcement. I'm creating an anthology series set in the Stone Age and it's called The Uncanny Valley. It's a primal horror story that drags you into the shadows of prehistory, where danger lurks at every corner. This is horror at its rawest. No modern tropes, just blood, bone, and fear in the Uncanny Valley. If you've ever wanted to see Neanderthals clash with Sapiens, survival in the Ice Age, or a knight stalked by Homo Erectus, this is your chance to make it happen. We've just launched our crowdfunding campaign along with our official trailer, and as you can see we know what we're doing, everything from the props to the cameras are the best in the business. And this is more than just a show, it's an entire new horror universe. We plan to expand this series into new, terrifying worlds, hopefully including a CGI Dinopithecus. So please go donate today, every dollar makes a difference. So hit the link in the description or the pinned comment below and go watch the trailer. And back The Uncanny Valley project on Indiegogo today. Violence within and between groups was present on every continent. Throughout history, conflict has often broken out between neighboring groups and ethnicities. Again and again, human societies have proven that civilization does not erase the deep roots of violence in our nature, nor does it cause it. Violence takes on different meanings depending on its purpose. When it's used to defend oneself or protect a community, it can be seen as justified. But when it's used for exploitation, domination, or to harm peaceful people, it crosses into something darker. Violence not as survival, but as power. So what do massacres painted on stone and bodies riddled with arrows have to do with us? Well, probably more than we'd like to admit. The violence of the early Neolithic became something that was not just a survival instinct. In farming societies, violence took on a new dimension. It became tied to land and probably identity. L's Trox also shows us that violence was passionate. It may be a case of violence as symbolic communication. The slaughter was more than just killing, it was a performance. And the rock art tells us the same thing. Painting such horrific acts of violence was to be proud of it, and to say, we can do this again. So what can we learn from Neolithic Spain? Civilization didn't create violence, it just reshaped it. It gave us borders to defend, identities to enforce, and audiences to impress. And that is why those cave paintings with their archers and their corpses are not just prehistoric relics, they're mirrors of humanity. And 7,000 years later, we're still painting our violence on cave walls. The cave just became the screen.