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Researchers working in Indonesia have discovered what may be the oldest known cave paintings on Sulawesi, one of the country’s islands. It is thought that the painting is at least 45,000 years old and its age even calls into question if the makers of the painting were Homo sapiens, or perhaps a now extinct human species.

Discovered in 2017 deep in the Sulawesi cave known as Leang Tedongnge, researchers published their findings this week in Science Advances. Despite only being around 40 miles from the city of Makassar, the caves have remained largely untouched and unexplored.

The painting is a depiction of at least three small, short-legged pigs – known as a warty pig – still found on the island today. A fourth animal figure was present, but due to deterioration, its species could not be confirmed although researchers believe it was another warty pig. Due to the composition of the painting, it is thought that the animals were positioned to create a narrative scene. Above the hindquarter of the most in-tact drawing (referred to as “pig 1”), there are also two hand stencils, much like those found at Lascaux and various other locations, made with similar red and purple hues used in in the animal figures.

To date the images, small samples of the pigment used to portray the animals were removed from the cave wall. Then, using uranium-series dating, researchers were able to determine that pig 1 was at least 45,500 years old. It is possible, however, that the painting could be hundreds or even thousands of years older than presently thought because the testing only assessed the age of speleothem, one mineral found on the cave walls.

The painting is not a unique phenomenon on the island, either. In fact, in addition to other paintings discussed in the report, researchers published a paper in 2019 on another series of cave paintings on Sulawesi that were found to be 43,900 years old. At the time, the figural drawings held the top spot for the oldest known cave paintings and were touted as the “earliest hunting scene in prehistoric art.” Many of the researchers involved in the discovery of the warty pig drawings also worked on the 2019 report as well.

Another intriguing matter in the discovery is that to date, no human skeletal remains have been found on the island that are as old as the drawings. What this could mean is that the paintings were not made by “anatomically modern humans” but by another hominin. Dr Adam Brumm, one of the researchers behind the recent report, told The New York Times that he anticipates the discovery of modern human remains in the near future, which could account for the paintings.

However, archaeologist João Zilhão, who was not a part of these studies, disagrees. According to Dr Zilhão, the paintings could have been created by other hominins. “An anatomically modern human is an anatomical definition,” Zilhão said in a statement. “It has nothing to do with cognition, intelligence or behavior.”

While the painting’s creator(s) are still a mystery, what is known is that the paintings are an incredible discovery that sheds light on prehistoric peoples. The discovery also highlights the fragility of these types of paintings that are vulnerable to the elements, and as shown by portions of the Leang Tedongnge paintings, are at risk of disappearing before being rediscovered.

Last year, we looked forward to Christo’s temporary transformation of the Arc de Triomphe (an installation now scheduled for October this year) but now, Paris has announced big plans for the Champs-Élysées, the iconic avenue that leads up to the Arc de Triomphe. The Champs-Élysées will be getting a permanent facelift over the next few years bringing greenery, and hopefully new life, back to the beloved Parisian promenade.

Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo announced that the €250 million (£225 million) project – unveiled in 2019 – has officially been approved following campaigns to rethink the avenue that started in 2018. PCA-Stream, architect Philippe Chiambaretta’s firm, designed the plans for the Champs-Élysées, which will transform the 1.2-mile avenue into “an extraordinary garden.”

In a statement, the committee behind the project stated that over the last three decades, the “legendary” Champs-Élysées had “lost its splendour” and been “progressively abandoned by Parisians.” To reinvigorate the avenue, the design will see that vehicle traffic is reduced by half, streets are transformed into pedestrian areas, and green areas are added to improve air quality.

Originally designed in 1667 by André Le Nôtre, Louis XIV’s gardener, the major avenue was renamed the Champs-Élysées, after the Elysian Fields of mythical Greek afterlife, and extended in 1709. It has since been a hub for French and Parisian life, alike. It’s where Bastille Day is annually recognised and where people have taken to the streets to celebrate iconic moments of all kinds, from the end of Nazi occupation in 1944 to when France won the World Cup in 1998 and 2018.

In recent years, though, the Champs-Élysées has lost a critical part of its nature: the people of France. According to research released at the end of 2019, around 100,000 people circulated along the avenue each day. Of those pedestrians, 72 percent were tourists and 22 percent were people who work in the area. Today, the Champs-Élysées is lined with high-end retailers and expensive cafes, leaving little question as to why fewer locals head to the thoroughfare.

In addition to the dwindling number of Parisians taking to the Champs-Élysées, the street has also developed a pretty severe pollution problem. At the time of the study, eight lanes of traffic throbbed with an average of 3,000 cars every hour, most of which were passing through on the road that loops around Paris.

“It was always designed for the people and shouldn’t just be a luxury avenue,” said Chiambaretta, who noted that “pollution, the place of the car, tourism, and consumerism” were the downfall of the Champs-Élysées, as well as other cities around the world.

Of course, since the pandemic set in, the figures above are a bit different, but if nothing was done, it was anticipated that these numbers would return to be much the same, so Paris is acting now.

The revamp also includes new plans for the Place de la Concorde, which sits at the opposite end of the Champs-Élysées from the Arc de Triomphe. The city has a lot planned, in terms of public works, ahead of hosting the 2024 Olympics, which include changes to the Place de la Concorde. However, due to its extensive nature, the Champs- Élysées project isn’t expected to be finished before 2030.