Are These the Oldest Images of Dogs?

Cave art discovered in Saudi Arabia dates back thousands of years and possibly shows hunters leading dogs on leashes.




PHOTOGRAPH BY MARIA GUAGNIN
PHOTOGRAPH BY MARIA GUAGNIN
PHOTOGRAPH BY HUW GROUCUTT
PHOTOGRAPH BY ASH PARTON


By Sarah Gibbens
PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 17, 2017

In northwestern Saudi Arabia, a hunter surrounded by a pack of dogs threads an arrow, props it up against the string of his bow, and pulls it back to kill a wild animal roaming nearby. He's flanked by other hunters readying their weapons.

This scene, and others like it, are engraved onto the cliffsides protruding from the dry, arid desert covering the northern region of present-day Saudi Arabia. A team of researchers think it may be the earliest depiction of dogs ever documented—although other experts aren't yet convinced of that fact. (This story was first reported by David Grimm for Science.)

"The distinction of herders and hunters was immediately clear," said Maria Guagnin, an archaeologist from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany. Working with the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, Guagnin documented 1,405 rock art panels that contain 6,618 individual animal depictions.

Rock art carved into the cliffsides of archaeological sites at Shuwaymis and Jubbah shows images of dogs aiding human hunters. Compared to the adjacent carvings of people, the canines are medium-sized, with short snouts, pointed ears, and a perky, curled tail. They resemble the modern-day Canaan dog breed.

More:
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/11/ancient-dog-rock-art-arabian-desert-cliff-images-spd/