The authors test their hypothesis by constructing a database of 256 sequences of dots, lines, and <Y> symbols in late Paleolithic European cave art and the animals with which they were associated.

On the reverse were three etched symbols: a line, an X and another line. Von Petzinger, a palaeoanthropologist from the University of Victoria in Canada, is spearheading an unusual study of cave art.

Western cultures have generally regarded bats with superstition and fear; but in China, expressed in art and handicrafts, the bat has achieved respectability as a symbol of happiness and good luck.

"Now, what is the meaning of these symbols? It is impossible to know. But they put on this bone something they wanted to explain: 'I saw 16 animals in this place'. It could be something like language.

Hidden deep in the highlands of southern Venezuela, archaeologists have uncovered one of humanity's best-kept secrets. At around 20 different sites, carved and painted in caves and on boulders ...

These symbols, along with the temple’s alignment to the Sun’s rays, create a celestial clock that marries art and astronomy.