A joint expedition of Venezuelan and international researchers has discovered a spectacular gallery of Upper Paleolithic rock art in a deep limestone cavern near the Orinoco headwaters. The central mural depicts a jaguar with its spots represented by star-like symbols, surrounded by a series of abstract geometric patterns that appear to map the movement of the Pleiades constellation across the horizon.
The paintings were executed using a rare mixture of red ochre and resin, which has allowed for precise radiocarbon dating to 15,000 years ago. This discovery provides significant evidence for advanced astronomical knowledge among South American hunter-gatherers and suggests that the jaguar was a central figure in early cosmological mythologies in the Amazon basin.