Mid-Holocene age obtained for nested diamond pattern petroglyph in the Billasurgam Cave complex, Kurnool District, southern India

► A petroglyph from South India was sampled for direct dating. ► A radiocarbon age of about 5000 years ago was obtained. ► The petroglyph dates to the Mesolithic period. ► This is the first reliable direct date for Indian rock art. ► The nested diamond petroglyph design may be associated with honey gathering.