The oldest blue pigment in Europe might have been Stone Age makeup, but why isn't it in cave art? A new discovery in Germany reveals traces of blue residue on a bowl dating back to the late Stone Age, suggesting that blue pigments were used earlier than previously believed. The blue compound, azurite, is a mineral formed from copper ore and can be naturally found in the ground near the archaeological site. While blue isn't as common in nature as other colors, the research team wants to find out where it came from. They used microscopy, X-ray, and infrared techniques to study the blue compound in more detail, revealing tiny blue spots in the bowl, suggesting it was once spread all over the surface. This could mean the bowl was used specifically to hold the blue pigment. From a chemical analysis, the researchers learned that the compound had many copper atoms, narrowing it down to azurite. This is different from other blue dyes like indigo or Egyptian blue. Azurite has been found in Neolithic female burial sites in Turkey and on the hair and eyes of Bronze Age figures from Greece, suggesting it could have been used cosmetically. The Stone Age discovery predates these discoveries, but it could have had a similar role. If Paleolithic people used blue to decorate their bodies and faces, there wouldn't be any record of that now, except on the occasional stone bowl. So, Stone Age artists had access to blue pigments but didn't use them in cave art, possibly using them as makeup instead. The lead researcher, Izzy Wisher, suggests that the presence of azurite shows that Palaeolithic people had a deep knowledge of mineral pigments and could access a much broader color palette than previously thought.
