the oldest expression in art is found in caves in the south of what country
Cave painting The oldest date given to an animal cave painting is now a pig that has a minimum age of 35,400 years old at Timpuseng cave in Sulawesi, an Indonesian island. Indonesian and Australian scientists have dated other non-figurative paintings on the walls to be approximately 40,000 years old. The method they used to confirm this was dating the age of the stalactites that formed over the top of the paintings.[5][6] The art is similar in style and method to that of the Indonesian caves as there were also hand stencils and disks made by blowing paint onto the walls. Cave paintings in El Castillo cave were found to date back to at least 37,300 years old by researchers at Bristol University, making them the oldest known cave art in Europe, 5â€“10,000 years older than previous examples from France.[7][8] This date coincides with the earliest known evidence for Homo sapiens in Europe. Because of the cave art's age, some scientists have conjectured that the paintings may have been made by Neanderthals.[9]
Cave The largest and most abundant solutional caves are located in limestone. Limestone dissolves under the action of rainwater and groundwater charged with H2CO3 (carbonic acid) and naturally occurring organic acids. The dissolution process produces a distinctive landform known as karst, characterized by sinkholes and underground drainage. Limestone caves are often adorned with calcium carbonate formations produced through slow precipitation. These include flowstones, stalactites, stalagmites, helictites, soda straws and columns. These secondary mineral deposits in caves are called speleothems.