Challenging prehistoric “religiosity”: re-analyzing Paleolithic and Mesolithic “shamanism” through cognitive, archaeological and “Pettazzonian” lenses

Although human prehistory is studied through interdisciplinary approaches, it currently lacks a dedicated contribution from the history of religions. To address this gap, this paper proposes an interdisciplinary synthesis integrating cognitive and evolutionary sciences of religion, prehistoric archaeology, and the history of religions, drawing methodological inspiration from Pettazzoni’s Roman school. We propose prehistoric shamanism as a compelling case study to test our approach. Notably, the category of shamanism—often misused by prehistoric scholars—remains highly contested due to its broad and often uncritical application. We will analyze specific archaeological materials frequently interpreted as “shamanic” from the Paleolithic and the Mesolithic, such as the so-called “shamanic figure” from Les Trois Frères Cave, the visual culture of Chauvet, the burial of Hilazon Tachtit, and the use of psychoactive substances. These examples will be scrutinized across three levels: 1) the archaeological level, where we differentiate empirical data from speculative interpretation; 2) the cultural-historical level, where we critically deconstruct the application of the shamanic category to prehistoric contexts; 3) the evolutionary and cognitive level, where we adopt a neuroaesthetic perspective to propose alternative explanations for the cultural significance of this material. The expected results aim to problematize shamanism as a historic-religious category, demonstrating that it oversimplifies diverse phenomena better understood as distinct cultural expressions shaped by cognitive, emotional, and socio-cultural processes. This interdisciplinary framework seeks to bridge entrenched epistemological divides and advance the scientific study of prehistoric “religiosity” with greater theoretical and methodological rigor.