The Prehistoric Roots of Human Faith

Most of human religious history occurred before we ever started writing things down. While recorded history is only 7,000 years old, spiritual practice has been a central part of the human experience for far longer.

We often associate faith with ancient texts, but our ancestors were performing complex rituals long before the invention of writing. Because these traditions left no documents behind, archaeologists must piece together the past through cave paintings, burials, and mysterious artifacts. This leaves much of our earliest spiritual history open to debate and scientific mystery. It is a humbling reminder that humans have been searching for meaning for almost as long as we have existed.