Cave of El Castillo, Spain. Handprints dated to 40,800 years BP. Photo 2012, University of Bristol.
It is fairly well known
that the Earth’s magnetic field has been weakening and the North magnetic Pole
has been shifting at increasing rates, prompting speculation about a forthcoming
reversal of the magnetic field of the Earth, and its effects on the life on
Earth. “Over the recent past, Earth’s
magnetic field has steadily weakened (~9% in the past 170 years), and this,
along with the current rapid movement of the magnetic North Pole, has increased
speculation that a field reversal may be imminent. The estimated economic
impacts of such a reversal have focused on the increased exposure to extreme
solar storms, with multibillion-dollar daily loss estimates likely to be
conservative.” (Cooper et al. 2021:1)
As to what impact such a change in Earth’s magnetic field, a recent study, based on new evidence from an ancient C14 sequence looked at the consequences of such an event known as the Laschamps Excursion. “One of the best opportunities to study the impacts of extreme changes in Earth’s magnetic field is the Laschamps Excursion (hereafter Laschamps) – a recent, relatively short-duration (<1000 year) reversal -41 thousand years ago (ka). Sedimentary and volcanic deposits indicate a weakening of the magnetic field intensity to <28% of current levels during the reversed phase of the Laschamps and , notably, as little as 0 to 6% during the preceding transition as polarity switched. (Cooper et al. 2021:1)
The
researchers found that “a return to
periglacial conditions that occurred at 42.23±o.2 ka, coincident with the
weakening of the magnetic field during the transition into the Laschamps. The
periglacial conditions lasted until the Holocene suggesting pervasive and
widespread cold conditions (associated with a strengthening or northward shift
in the core westerly airflow) across this sector of the Southern Ocean.” (Cooper et al. 2021:6)
The term ‘periglacial’ refers to conditions at the edge of a glacier, and such conditions could well have driven populations into caves for shelter from the cold.
“Overall, the signals – suggest that contemporaneous climatic and environmental impacts occurred across the mid- to lower latitudes ~42 ka, coincident with Earth’s weakened geomagnetic field immediately preceding the reversed state of the Laschamps. We describe this as the ‘Adams Transitional Geomagnetic Event (hereafter ‘Adams Event’), named after the science writer Douglas Adams because of the timing (the number ‘42’) and the associated range of extinctions.” (Cooper et al. 2021:7) The name ‘Adams Event’ was in reference to Douglas Adam’s 1979 book Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which declared that the answer to the ultimate answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything, was ‘42’.
“These broad-scale atmospheric circulation changes appear to have had far reaching consequences. Within Australia, the peak megafaunal extinction phase is dated at ~42.1 ka, both in the mainland and Tasmania, and has generally been attributed to human action, although well after their initial arrival at least 50 ka. Instead, the megafaunal extinctions appear to be contemporaneous with a pronounced climatic phase shift to arid conditions that resulted in the loss of the large interior lakes and widespread change in vegetation patterns.” (Cooper et al. 2021:7)
Although this study was primarily based upon data from the southern hemisphere, its conclusions are applied globally. “For instance, the Adams Event is very close in timing to the globally widespread appearance and increase in figurative cave art, red ochre handprints, and changing use of caves ~40 to 42 ka, e.g., in Europe and Island Southeast Asia. This sudden behavioral shift in very different parts of the world is consistent with an increasing or changed use of caves during the Adams Event, potentially as shelter from the increase of ultraviolet B, to potentially harmful levels during GSM or SEPs, which might also explain an increased use of red ochre sunscreen. Rather than the actual advent of figurative art, early cave art would therefore appear to represent a preservation of preexisting behaviors on a new medium.” (Cooper et al. 2021:7)
This last statement, that the shifting of the Earth’s magnetic field
event, had the effect of a “widespread
appearance and increase in figurative cave art, red ochre handprints, and
changing use of caves” requires some kind of explanation. How could that
event actually affect human creativity?
In 2009, Allan Snyder, director for the Center for the Mind at the University of Sydney, published the results of an inquiry into magnetically induced creativity. He stated “We cannot draw naturalistic scenes unless we are taught tricks. This is surprising because our brains obviously possess all of the necessary visual information required to draw, but we are apparently unable to consciously access it for the purpose of drawing. Unlike artistic savants, we tend to be more aware of the meaningful whole than its constituent parts. Snyder et al. (2003) directed low-frequency rTMS (repetetive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation)for 15 minutes over the LATL (left anterior temporal lobe) of 11, right-handed, healthy participants. The participants were given 1 min. to draw a dog, horse or face from memory, before, during, immediately after and 45 min. after rTMS treatment.
Magnetic stimulation caused a major change in the schema of the drawings of 4 out of 11 participants. Two of these also underwent sham (inactive) stimulation either the week before or after the real test. The changes in drawing style were observed only following active stimulation and not after sham stimulation. In some cases, the drawings returned to ‘normal’ 45 min. after rTMS ceased. Several participants reported greater awareness of detail in their surrounds after active rTMS. One participant published his experience, stating that he ‘could hardly recognize the drawings as his own even though he had watched himself render each image.’” (Snyder 2009)
While I do not know if Cooper et al. envision the swapping of the Earth’s magnetic poles as some kind of magnetic wave sweeping through the minds of Paleolithic peoples, or if it was the return to full magnetic strength after the decline through the millenia preceding the event that supposedly triggered the creativity of ~42.1 ka, but as they reported, cave painting appeared right around the time of that event on both sides of our globe. In El Castillo cave in Spain handprints and other painted figures have been dated to 40,800 years ago (University of Bristol 2012) and on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi zoomorphic figures in a cave have been dated as early as 43,900 years ago (Smith 2019).
And this did not require every human to be artistically affected. Remember Snyder’s statement “We cannot draw naturalistic scenes unless we are taught tricks”. Even of only a small percentage of the population became this creative, once the first improved images are painted the “tricks” are taught, they can be studied and repeated.
So, did this really happen, I think the jury is still out on this one,
but it is sure to attract (magnetically) some thought.
NOTE: Some images in this posting were retrieved from the internet with a search for public domain photographs. If any of these images are not intended to be public domain, I apologize, and will happily provide the picture credits if the owner will contact me with them. For further information on these reports you should read the original reports at the sites listed below.
REFERENCES:
Cooper, A. et al., 2021, A Global Environmental Crisis 42,000 Years Ago, Science, Vol. 371, 19 February 2021, p. 811, doi: 10.1126/science.abb8677.
Snyder, Allan, 2009, Explaining and Inducing Savant Skills: Privileged Access to Lower Level, Less-Processed Information, 27 May 2009, Philosophical Transactions B, The Royal Biological Society, vol. 364, pp,1399-1405
Smith,
Kiona, 2019, A 43,900-year-old cave
painting is the oldest story ever recorded, 15 December 2019, Ars Technica,
https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/12/a-43900-year-old-cave-painting-is-the-oldest-story-ever-recorded/
University
of Bristol, 2012, Uranium-series
dating reveals Iberian paintings are Europe’s oldest cave art, Science
Daily, 14 June 2012, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012,06,120614142840.htm
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