Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40694408›Full record

ArticleeLife2025

An initial report of circa 241,000- to 335,000-year-old rock engravings and their relation to

Lee R Berger, John Hawks, Agustín Fuentes, Dirk Van Rooyen, Mathabela Tsikoane, Maropeng Mpete, Samuel Nkwe, Keneiloe Molopyane

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in eLife, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Lee R Berger *The National Geographic Society, Washington DC, United States.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0367-7629
John Hawks *Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3187-3755
Agustín Fuentes *Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0955-8214
Dirk Van RooyenCentre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Mathabela TsikoaneCentre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Maropeng MpeteCentre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Samuel NkweCentre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Keneiloe Molopyane *Centre for the Exploration of the Deep Human Journey, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Funding

John Templeton Foundation The Rising Star ProjectNational Geographic Society The Rising Star Project
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The production of painted, etched, or engraved designs on cave walls or other surfaces is recognized as a major cognitive step in human evolution. Such intentional designs, which are widely interpreted as signifying, recording, and transmitting information in a durable manner, were once considered exclusive to Late Pleistocene

Indexed as

CavesEngraving and EngravingsFossilsHominidaeAnimalsHumansSouth Africacognitive evolutionevolutionary biologyHomo naledinonerock art

Identifiers

PMID40694408
PMCPMC12283075

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.