Lascaux
Painted French cave
Lascaux is a cave complex in southwestern France containing prehistoric paintings estimated at 17,000 years old.
The elaborate depictions of animals—horses, bulls, deer—rank among the most significant examples of Paleolithic art.
Discovered in 1940, the original caves were closed to protect the paintings from deterioration; visitors now tour a replica.
The word functions as shorthand for early human artistic achievement: the Lascaux of its time.
Pictures made with pigment
- muralsLarge wall paintings
- pigmentsColor-giving compounds
- ochreIron-rich earth pigment
- charcoalBurned wood residue
bison · aurochs · horses · stags · handprints · engravings · polychrome · iconography
Cultural arm of UN
- World HeritageUNESCO-protected significant sites
- replicaFaithful scaled reproduction
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
- fungal infectionDisease from spore-producing organisms
green algae · white mold · climate control · deterioration · restricted access · monitoring
Earliest archaeological era
- Stone AgeEra of knapped tools
- ice ageEra of massive glaciation
- Cro-MagnonEarly modern European human
- hunter-gathererPre-farming subsistence lifestyle
megafauna · mammoth · flint · spear · fire · toolmaking · rituals · shamanism
Small scenic cavern
- chamberEnclosed room or cavity
- cavernLarge natural underground chamber
- limestoneCarbonate sedimentary rock
- karstEroded soluble rock terrain
subterranean · underground · calcite · formations · darkness · torchlight · acoustics · humidity
Western European republic
Early wartime year
- teenagersPeople aged thirteen to nineteen
- explorationTraveling through unknown regions
- unearthingDiscovering something hidden
- revelationSurprising disclosed truth
paintings
Pictures made with pigment
charcoal · bison · aurochs · horses · stags · handprints · engravings · polychrome · iconography · symbolism
UNESCO
Cultural arm of UN
- World HeritageUNESCO-protected significant sites
- replicaFaithful scaled reproduction
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
fungal infection · green algae · white mold · climate control · deterioration · restricted access · monitoring
Paleolithic
Earliest archaeological era
- Stone AgeEra of knapped tools
- ice ageEra of massive glaciation
- Cro-MagnonEarly modern European human
hunter-gatherer · megafauna · mammoth · flint · spear · fire · toolmaking · rituals · shamanism · tribe
grotto
Small scenic cavern
- chamberEnclosed room or cavity
- cavernLarge natural underground chamber
- limestoneCarbonate sedimentary rock
karst · subterranean · underground · calcite · formations · darkness · torchlight · acoustics · humidity · microclimate
France
Western European republic
1940
Early wartime year
- teenagersPeople aged thirteen to nineteen
- explorationTraveling through unknown regions
- unearthingDiscovering something hidden
- prehistorystone tools, Neolithic, Stone Age, caveman, cavemen
- ancient sitesPompeii, Stonehenge, pyramids, Colosseum, Giza
- French LandmarksEiffel Tower, Notre-Dame, Arc de Triomphe, Versailles, Louvre
- archaeologyexcavation, dig site, archaeologist, dig, archaeological digs
- Stone Agecave painting, paleolithic, hand ax, handaxes, hand axe
- ancient artsculpture, sculptures, pottery, mosaics, murals
LascauxBritish Museum
London antiquities collection
museum · Sotheby's · traveling exhibition · private collection
- Lascaux cavesDecorated prehistoric French cavern