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Lascaux caves in the Vezere Valley, Dordogne

The world famous caves at Lascaux are found near Montignac, 30km north of Sarlat. The paintings in Lascaux caves date from the period around 19,000 years ago.

Lascaux II caves are a copy of most of the prehistoric paintings contained in the original Lascaux caves, 200 metres away. As far as possible the same materials - natural pigments etc - and techniques have been used for the copies as for the originals.

Video visit to the Lascaux Caves

In a well known story, the Lascaux I caves were discovered in 1940 by a group of teenagers who were searching for their dog. After the end of the second world war the caves were opened to the public, to great acclaim, but then were closed in 1963 because the paintings were being damaged by the breath of thousands of visitors.

The cave paintings at Lascaux are mostly pictures of large animals. Perhaps most interesting of all, they include the 'auroch', an early relative of the ox that is now extinct. It is believed that the Auroch was a sacred beast in prehistoric times.

Note: I heard recently that the copies themselves are also now in danger - perhaps not surprising as they were made using the same techniques as the originals.

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