The portable art is the Venus of Hohle Fels, a 6-inch-tall ivory figurine of a woman. It was found in 2008 in Hohle Fels cave in the Ach Valley of southwestern Germany.
The figurine is so old that it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly which hominid species created it. It has been variously attributed to early Homo sapiens, Homo heidelbergensis, and even Neanderthals.
Homo sapiens arrived in Europe around 40,000 years ago, and the Venus of Hohle Fels is dated to around 35,000 years ago. This would make it one of the earliest known examples of figurative art by Homo sapiens in Europe.
Homo heidelbergensis is an extinct hominid species that lived in Europe and Africa between 700,000 and 200,000 years ago. There is some evidence that Homo heidelbergensis may have made simple tools and used fire, but there is no clear evidence that they created art.
Neanderthals are another extinct hominid species that lived in Europe and Asia between 400,000 and 40,000 years ago. Neanderthals are known to have made tools and used fire, and there is some evidence that they may have created cave paintings. However, there is no consensus among archaeologists about whether or not Neanderthals created the Venus of Hohle Fels.
The discovery of the Venus of Hohle Fels was a significant one, as it pushed back the date of the earliest known figurative art in Europe by tens of thousands of years. It also raised questions about the cognitive abilities of Neanderthals and the relationship between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.
The Venus of Hohle Fels is a beautiful and enigmatic object, and it continues to be studied by archaeologists and anthropologists today.