Wildfires in Indonesia Put Ancient Prehistoric Cave Art at Risk

Severe wildfires in Indonesia are threatening the world's oldest known cave paintings on the island of Sulawesi, according to researchers. The country is currently facing its worst forest and land fires in over a decade due to a strong El Niño weather pattern that brings high temperatures and low rainfall.

The Threat To Art

While Sumatra and Borneo have seen the most severe damage, fires have also reached Sulawesi. In South Sulawesi, fires burned near the Maros-Pangkep cave site for over a week earlier this month, coming within 800 metres of the cave. Firefighter Muhammad Ikfar stated that more than 270 hectares of the national park burned between September 30 and October 18.

Impact On History

These limestone caves hold extremely old prehistoric art. Researchers from Australia's Griffith University dated a painting of human-like figures and a pig in Maros-Pangkep to at least 51,200 years old, while a red hand stencil on nearby Muna island was dated to at least 67,800 years. Griffith University archaeologist Basran Burhan explained that intense heat can ruin the paintings by changing local temperatures and speeding up corrosion, while smoke leaves soot that covers the art and makes it blurry.

Context

El Niño is a natural climate pattern that causes warmer ocean temperatures in the Pacific, often leading to reduced rainfall and severe dry spells across parts of Southeast Asia. This creates vulnerable conditions for massive forest and peatland fires that are difficult to control.