From Shuwaymis, a hilly region of northwestern Saudi Arabia, engravings have emerged that show a hunter and his 13 dogs, two of which have what look like leashes running from their necks to the hunter’s waist.
Likely dating back to more than 8,000 years ago, the engravings are the oldest depicting dogs.
The dogs in the image all appear to be medium-sized canines, with typical domestic features like short snouts, curled tails and pricked up ears.
Below is the engraving captured on video.
Two theories are being propounded about these dogs. They may either have been domesticated elsewhere between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago and subsequently brought to the region, or they may have been bred in the region and adapted to hunting in the desert.
The correct age of the engravings is yet to be verified, but veteran archaeologist Paul Tacon at Griffith University in Gold Coast, Australia, says “their chronology is sound.”
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