as paintings, engravings and reliefs on stone walls, and portable art. Although first evidence of it was discovered in Europe, the earliest cave art was created in Australia and Southeast Asia. The oldest cave art so far discovered, is from the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, dated to 45 500 BP, depicting a warty pig and hand traces. Famous examples of cave art include the oldest figurative depictions in Europe found in Chauvet cave, Romuald’s Cave and Fumane Cave, while the most famous examples are found in the cave of Altamira and Lascaux. Cave art isn't confined to Europe, as examples of it can be found in Australia and Asia as well. Non-painted art exists as well, i.e. the Venus of Laussel which was carved into the limestone wall. The idea of art for art's sake, which was held by some archaeologists in the past, has today largely been abandoned. Totemism was another explanation, which was later abandoned. If the animals were totems, they wouldn't have been depicted as injured. Furthermore, there aren't gatherings of animals around any specific depictions, as would have been the case if they were totems. The art may have been part of a ritual to increase hunting success. Through the depictions of these animals, the prehistoric man would have attempted to gain power over them. Another explanation is that the magic could have been aimed at increasing the number of the depicted animals, which were vital for the survival of the upper paleolithic humans. Andre Leroi-Gourhan saw these depictions as a reflection of the natural and supernatural ordering of the world through sexual symbolism. Certain animals (i.e. the bison) were connected to female values and other to male values (i.e. the horse). These interpretations are based on subjective interpretations of modern humans, which don't necessarily reflect the worldviews of the prehistoric peoples. Shamanism is another popular explanation. The caves would as such represent entrances to the spiritual realm in which one can communicate with spiritual beings. Many of the animals depicted in cave art aren't depicted as hunted, as part of hunting magic. Their depictions would serve to give the shaman their strength and traits to help him during his hallucination, when he would communicate with the supernatural powers. The half-animal, half-man depictions, as for example the Trois-Frères sorcerer, would represent the Lord of Animals. Depictions of women in cave art suggests their participation in