The Color That Shouldn’t Exist: Scientists Find Unexpected Blue on Ancient Artifact

BY AARHUS U., NOV. 26, 2025

https://scitechdaily.com/the-color-that-shouldnt-exist-scientists-find-unexpected-blue-on-ancient-artifact/

A 13,000-year-old stone from Germany preserves traces of an unexpected blue pigment, challenging long-held assumptions about Palaeolithic colour use. 

Credit: Izzy Wisher et al. / Antiquity, 2025

In a groundbreaking discovery that sheds new light on the prehistoric origins of art and human creativity, researchers from Aarhus University have identified the earliest known use of blue pigment in Europe.

At the Final Paleolithic site of Mühlheim-Dietesheim in Germany, archaeologists from Aarhus University identified a faint blue residue on a stone artifact that is roughly 13,000 years old. After applying several advanced scientific techniques, the team determined that the material was the mineral pigment azurite, known for its intense blue color and not previously documented in Europe’s Paleolithic artistic record.

“This challenges what we thought we knew about Paleolithic pigment use,” sais Dr. Izzy Wisher, the lead author of the study.

Rethinking Paleolithic Color Traditions

Until recently, researchers assumed that Paleolithic artists relied almost entirely on red and black pigments, since virtually no other colors appear in surviving artworks from this era. Many experts attributed this pattern to either the scarcity of blue minerals or their limited appeal.

Because blue tones are missing from known Paleolithic art, the new finding raises the possibility that blue pigments were instead applied to the body or used to color textiles, activities that rarely preserve well in the archaeological record.

Microscopic image of nanosized blue pigment particles located directly beside the visible concentrations. 

Credit: Izzy Wisher et al. / Antiquity, 2025

“The presence of azurite shows that Paleolithic people had a deep knowledge of mineral pigments and could access a much broader color palette than we previously thought – and they may have been selective in the way they used certain colors,” Izzy Wisher says.

A Stone Palette Reveals New Possibilities

The stone bearing the azurite traces was originally thought to be an oil lamp. Now, it appears to have been a mixing surface or palette for preparing blue pigments — hinting at artistic or cosmetic traditions that remain largely invisible today.

The findings urge a rethink of Paleolithic art and color use, opening new avenues for exploring how early humans expressed identity, status, and beliefs through materials far more varied and vibrant than previously imagined.

The birth of modern Man

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