Archaeologists excavated a 5,000-year-old tomb and found a cup with
the image of a goat and a tree on it. It has a purposeful repetition, showing the movement of a goat towards a tree. By bringing these images closer together, archaeologists were able to obtain a sample of a moving image in the form of a 20-second film. The goat is one of the animals that is skilled in reaching heights, and the painter of Shahr-I sokhta managed to depict the jump of this goat with precision and dexterity.
This cup, which was used for drinking, is 10 cm high and is based on a pedestal. In many dishes, there are shapes that are just repetitions and there is no movement in them, but our research has shown that this role is the oldest idea of the ancient people to present a “moving image” and in today’s interpretation of “animation”.
