Are hand stencils in European cave art older than we think? An evaluation of the existing data and their potential implications

Since their discovery at the turn of the 20th century, hand stencils and prints have usually been assumed to belong largely, or entirely to the Mid Upper Palaeolithic (Gravettian sensu lato). These assumptions – rarely backed up by stringent consideration of chronometric data – derive from the pioneering chronological schemes of Breuil and Leroi-Gourhan. Here, we compile an exhaustive list of European Upper Palaeolithic caves which contain stencils and prints, and critically assess the available chronometric data. We conclude that in all or almost all known cases they are probably older, belonging to the Early or Initial Upper Palaeolithic, and for some examples one cannot rule out an older date.