考古学家发现了世界上最古老的蜡笔

在英国北约克郡斯卡伯勒一处古湖附近工作的考古学家说，他们可能发现了最早的蜡笔之一。红褐色的赭石被认为在一万年前被用来给动物的皮肤上色或在中石器时代制作艺术品。这个长方形的发现只有22毫米长，7毫米宽，但是它的表面有明显的条纹，很有可能是被刮掉来形成红色的。工具的一边被削尖了，另一个暗示是这部分被用来画或者上色。约克大学考古学系的Andy Needham博士解释说，这一发现有助于考古学家们了解到，在中石器时代的狩猎采采者身上，颜色是多么的重要。“对我来说，这是一个非常重要的目标，帮助我们对这个地区的生活有一个更大的了解;李约瑟在一份新闻稿中说，这表明这里将是一个色彩缤纷的地方。

Archaeologists working on a site near an ancient lake in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, UK say they may have discovered one of the earliest examples of a crayon. The reddish-brown piece of ochre is thought to have been used 10,000 years ago to color animal skins or produce artwork during the Mesolithic period.The oblong discovery is just 22 mm long and 7 mm wide, yet shows a heavily striated surface where it was most likely scraped to create red pigment. One side of the tool is sharpened, another hint that the piece was used to draw or color. Dr. Andy Needham from the University of York’s Department of Archaeology explained the discovery helps archaeologists understand how significant color might have been to the hunter-gatherers of the Mesolithic period.“For me it is a very significant object and helps us build a bigger picture of what life was like in the area; it suggests it would have been a very colourful place,said Needham in a press release.This has been a year of many art historical firsts. Within the last few months our knowledge of Greek civilization has been completely altered by the discovery of this tiny carved stone, and archaeologists found the first known use of a smiley face on an off-white jug in Southern Turkey. You can read more about the discovery of the ochre crayon, and other pieces found near the ancient lake in North Yorkshire, in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports. (via Hyperallergic)