15,000-Year-Old Clay Figurines in Israel Show Children Helped Make Early Art

Archaeologists have uncovered 154 figurative clay artefacts, aged between 15,000 and 11,650 years old, at three prehistoric sites in Israel. The discovery casts doubt on the idea that clay art appeared only after the start of farming. Fingerprints on the objects came from children, adolescents and adults. Some marks indicate that children under 10 worked on the figurines alongside grown-ups. The findings, published in PLOS ONE on November 11, 2026, offer rare insight into childhood, learning and artistic traditions among ancient hunter-gatherer groups.