Overview
- Published February 23, 2026, the peer‑reviewed analysis used quantitative‑linguistic and computational models to assess repetition, predictability and entropy in the marks.
- The Aurignacian sequences from roughly 43,000–34,000 years ago differ from systems that encode speech yet closely match the earliest proto‑cuneiform in information density and repetition rates.
- The dataset catalogs 22 recurring symbols carved on ivory, bone and antler, with crosses absent from human depictions and dots absent from tools, indicating learned conventions.
- Usage patterns stayed consistent across object types for about 10,000 years within a concentrated Swabian Jura tradition, suggesting shared rules for recording information.
- The specific meanings remain undecoded, and researchers stress these are not full writing as further ERC‑funded EVINE work expands the corpus and refines interpretations.