Роспись пещеры альтамира: Пещера Альтамира в Испании. Наскальная живопись каменного века.

Пещера Альтамира: можно ли ее посетить и чем уникальны ее настенные рисунки

Ученые поэтично называют Альтамиру «Сикстинской капеллой первобытного мира». В 1868 году ее открыл археолог-любитель Марселино Санс де Саутуола. Во время прогулки в компании собственной дочери 8 или 9 лет от роду он случайно обнаружил пещеру, потолок которой был полностью покрыт наскальными росписями.

Гиды же, работающие в испанском регионе Кантабрия, отзываются о ней чуть более сдержано. Говорят примерно следующее: в 30 километрах к западу от города Сантандера есть место, где можете увидеть наскальные рисунки эпохи палеолита – исторического периода каменного века. Сразу скажу: поэтическое описание пещеры точно совпадает с тем впечатлением, которое она производит даже на подготовленного человека. Рисунки тут настолько огромные и выполненные с таким мастерством, что даже сравнения с работами Микеланджело не кажутся избыточными или чрезмерными.

А вот во фразе «вы можете посетить» – скрыт изрядный подвох. Объясню почему. До 70-х годов пещера, действительно, была открыта для посещения всех желающих. Иногда сюда наведывалось до 1500 человек в день, и результат туристического паломничества оказался вполне предсказуемым: в 2002 году на стенах пещеры обнаружили плесень. Правительство Испании испугалось, что наскальные полотна пострадают, и Альтамиру закрыли для посещения. Ну, а чтобы не терять доход от туристов, рядом построили копию, полностью повторяющую оригинал.

Музей Альтамиры – реплика, повторяюшая оригинал

Тем не менее, увидеть подлинную пещеру – хоть и сложно, но возможно. Только для этого нужно обладать очень хорошей кармой и быть любимцем фортуны. С февраля 2014 года в музее Альтамиры каждую неделю устраивается лотерея, победители которой получают возможность отправиться в тур по пещере.

Настоящая пещера Альтамира, куда попадают лишь счастливчики

Проходит розыгрыш по пятницам. Вам нужно приехать в музей Альтамиры к 9.30-10.00 утра и заполнить стандартную анкету посетителя. Принимать участие в лотерее разрешено всем лицам старше 16 лет. Примерно в десять с небольшим из общей массы заявок наобум выбираются пять имен, и счастливчики получают заветные билеты.

Тур по пещере начинается ровно в 10.40, длится 37 минут и во время него необходимо четко следовать инструкциям гида: ничего не трогать, ступать только там, где разрешено и не уклоняться от маршрута. Ну, а фотографии настенных полотен вы сможете сделать позже в реплике пещеры – все равно на снимках оригинальные доисторические рисунки от копий никто не отличит.

Если же вам не повезет – повода вешать нос нет. Музей Альтамиры – это не просто выставочный зал. Тут воссоздана полноценная реконструкция пещеры с тем лишь отличием, что внутри не прохладно, а тепло, да и по полу идешь, не боясь споткнуться. Шутка ли! Некоторых путешественников местные гиды даже умудряются обвести вокруг пальца: люди при выходе из музея пребывают в полной уверенности, что побывали в оригинальной пещере.

Итак, в чем же уникальность Альтамиры? В том, что на ее потолке охрой, углем и гематитом нанесены изображения бизонов, лошадей и коз. Причем многие – больше метра в длину. Самое раннее датировано 36 000 годом до нашей эры. Это не животное, а некий символ, состоящий из нескольких параллельных и двух изогнутых линий. Нанесено охрой, а над тем, что именно таким образом хотел сказать первобытный художник, ученые бьются до сих пор.

  Самое древнее изображение Альтамиры, датированное 36 000 до н.э. 

Рисунки второй группы относят к 22 000 году до нашей эры, и их любой человек поймет без дополнительных разъяснений. Во-первых, это отпечатки ладоней, оставленные на потолке пещеры. Нанесены они снова охрой, так что различимы великолепно.

Рядом с ними уже полноценный образец доисторического искусства – изображение лошади. Пока контурное и не закрашенное, однако в том, что живший в пещере художник запечатлел именно это животное – сомнений нет никаких: многие из нас гораздо хуже лошадей рисуют.

Изображение коня, датированное 22 годом до нашей эры

Рядом – «портрет» дикого козла, созданный примерно в 18 000 году до нашей эры. Все еще не заштрихованный и схематичный, но выполнен с большим вниманием к деталям. Взять хотя бы изогнутые рога животного. По их форме ученые пришли к выводу, что художник изобразил не какого-нибудь абстрактного, а альпийского горного козла, раньше они в изобилии водились в этой части Испании.

Но, безусловно, самые впечатляющие картины, были созданы в Альтамире примерно в 14 500 году до нашей эры. Собственно, из-за них-то пещеру и сравнивают с Сикстинской капеллой. Бизоны написаны охрой и углем. Рядом с ними – изображение лани.

Каждый рисунок метр в длину и полностью закрашен, а некоторые даже в 3D – первобытные художники лихо использовали рельеф пещерного потолка, чтобы добиться объемного изображения. Цвета – невероятно яркие. Подчас кажется картины писали не охрой, а кровью, хотя действительности это не соответствует.

Сколько людей участвовало в создании фресок последнего периода – выяснить не представляется возможным, но явно никак не один, ведь, во-первых, во времена палеолита люди жили небольшими группами, во-вторых, недолго, а, в третьих, посвящать все свое время творчеству первобытный человек никак не мог. Стадо же парнокопытных на потолке Альтамиры насколько большое, что для повторения подобного и сегодня артель профессиональных художников нужна.

Плюс иногда рисунки перекрывают друг друга. Взять, к примеру, невероятно мастерское, но не раскрашенное изображение головы бизона, сделанное углем. Поверх тела животного другой художник снова нарисовал бизона, разом сведя на нет все старания своего предшественника. Кстати, по все той же голове бизоне, ученые пришли к выводу, что первобытные мастера использовали не просто кусочки угля, а затачивали их на манер карандашей, иначе столь высокой изобразительной точности им не удалось бы добиться.

Картины гости пещеры рассматривают не иначе как широко раскрыв глаза от изумления, а рот – от удивления. И сегодня-то со всеми нашими приспособлениями подобное сотворить под силу не каждому. Словом, неудивительно, что, когда в 1880 году Марселино Санс де Саутуола вместе с археологом Мадридского университета Хуаном Виланова-и-Пьера, обнародовали результаты своих исследований, ученое сообщество им не поверило им и назвало наскальные полотна фальшивками.

Сегодня же изображения Альтамиры датированы с помощью уран-ториевого метода. С 1985 года пещера является объектом всемирного наследия ЮНЕСКО, что и немудрено, ведь это самый масштабный памятник первобытного изобразительного искусства, дошедший до наших дней.

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90000 Altamira Cave Paintings 90001 90002 90003 90004 Altamira Cave Entry 90005 90004 Photo: albertoyp via Panoramio 90005 90004 90009 Altamira Cave is 270 metres long and consists of a series of twisting passages and chambers. The main passage varies from two to six metres in height. Archaeological excavations in the cave floor found rich deposits of artefacts from the Upper Solutrean (ca 18 500 years ago) and Lower Magdalenean (between ca 16 500 and 14 000 years ago).Both periods belong to the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. In the millennia between these two occupations, the cave was evidently inhabited only by wild animals. Human occupants of the site were well-positioned to take advantage of the rich wildlife that grazed in the valleys of the surrounding mountains as well as the marine life available in nearby coastal areas. Around 13,000 years ago a rockfall sealed the cave’s entrance, preserving its contents until its eventual discovery, which occurred after a nearby tree fell and disturbed the fallen rocks.90010 90005 90004 Human occupation was limited to the cave mouth, although paintings were created throughout the length of the cave. The artists used charcoal and ochre or haematite to create the images, often diluting these pigments to produce variations in intensity and creating an impression of chiaroscuro. They also exploited the natural contours in the cave walls to give their subjects a three-dimensional effect. The Polychrome Ceiling is the most impressive feature of the cave, depicting a herd of extinct Steppe Bison (90013 Bison priscus 90014) in different poses, two horses, a large doe, and possibly a wild boar.90005 90004 Dated to the Magdalenean occupation, these paintings also include abstract shapes in addition to animal subjects. Solutrean paintings include images of horses and goats, as well as handprints that were created when artists placed their hands on the cave wall and blew pigment over them to leave a negative image. Numerous other caves in northern Spain contain Palaeolithic art, but none is as complex or well-populated as Altamira. 90005 90004 Text above adapted from Wikipedia. 90005 90004 90021 90005 90004 One of the bisons on the ceiling of Altamira in Spain, representing the final stage of polychrome art in which four shades of colour are used.90005 90004 Photo: M. Burkitt ‘The Old Stone Age’ (1955), after Breuil. 90005 90004 90028 90005 90004 Bison at Altamira. This appears to be the original of the one that Breuil painted, above. 90005 90004 Photo: Original, Leroi-Gourhan (1992) 90005 90004 90035 90005 90004 Another version of the bison above. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90042 90005 90004 The ‘Neocueva’, part of El Museo de Altamira, which aims to recreate the environment at Altamira so that people may get a feeling for the life of the people of Altamira, while the original cave is kept from harm.90005 90004 The large size of the mouth of the cave (20 metres wide and 6 metres high) provided access to a large ‘hall’. This large covered entrance lasted until 13 000 years ago, when it collapsed, sealing the cave, until it was discovered in 1868 when a hunter’s dog chased a fox across hilly countryside. The dog fell among some boulders. When the hunter rescued the dog, he saw the entrance to a cave. 90005 90004 Illuminated by daylight, this was the place where the tribe lived.90005 90004 Photo and text: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90052 90004 Plan of the Altamira museum, showing the display areas and the Neocueva. Note that North is towards the bottom of the image. 90005 90004 Photo: http://museodealtamira.mcu.es/ingles/exposicion_museo_00.html 90005 90004 90058 90005 90004 Aerial image of the museum and Altamira Cave, which is circled. 90005 90004 North to the top of the image.90005 90004 Photo: Google Earth 90005 90004 90067 90005 90004 Because the inhabitants lived close to the coast, fish was a common part of the diet. One of their regular activities was to organise expeditions to the coast to spear or cast their nets to catch fish from the sea. 90005 90004 Shellfish are also abundant on the coast. They obtained abundant seafood as well as highly prized shells, which according to their size were used as containers, decorative objects for the body, or ritual magic.90005 90004 Photo and text: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90076 90005 90004 Female bison at Altamira. This is a reproduction in the ‘Deutsches Museum’, Munich. 90005 90004 Photo: Ramessos 90002 Permission: Public Domain 90005 90004 90084 90005 90004 Head and forequarters of the bison above. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90091 90092 90005 90004 Another version of this female bison.90005 90004 Photo: (left) Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 (right) Gallup et al. 1997 90005 90004 90101 90005 90004 Another version of this female bison. 90005 90004 Photo: http://coursecontent.westhillscollege.com/Art%20Images/CD_01/DU2500/index.htm 90005 90004 90108 90005 90004 The ceiling art does not conform to any alignment or proportion of size, and some images overlap others.90005 90004 Photo: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90115 90005 90004 Altamira ceiling. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.arretetonchar.fr/ 90005 90004 90122 90005 90004 Bison. Time has faded this image. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90129 90005 90004 Head of a bison. This is an excellent photograph from the display at the Altamira Museum, and shows the care and attention to detail of the artists commissioned to make copies of the original Altamira paintings.90005 90004 Photo: Ernesto Lazo via Picasa 90005 90004 90136 90005 90004 Plan of the cave at Altamira. 90005 90004 Photo: Nachosan 90002 Permission: Creative Commons Attribution Generic / Share-Alike 3.0 90005 90004 90144 90005 90004 Plan of the cave at Altamira. 90005 90004 Photo: E. Pfeiffer ‘The Creative Explosion’ 90005 90004 90151 90005 90004 Plan of the cave at Altamira.90005 90004 Photo: Parkyn (1915) (Public Domain) 90005 90004 90158 90005 90004 Altamira cave is set on a hillside, and there is little to tell the casual traveller what mysteries lie behind the trees. 90005 90004 Photo: Hans Castorp via Panoramio 90005 90004 90165 90005 90004 The cave is not open to the general public. 90005 90004 Photo: ProfBoss via Panoramio 90005 90004 90172 90005 90004 View of the mountains from Altamira, which means ‘high view’.90005 90004 You can see why, when you look at this photo of the vista of the Picos de Europa mountains from outside the cave of Altamira, with the ground you are standing on just above the polychrome chamber. 90005 90004 Photo: Saura Ramos et al. (1999) 90005 90004 90181 90005 90004 This photo was taken in the original cave in the 1970s. 90005 90004 Photo: Corruchaga et al. (2003) 90005 90004 90188 90005 90004 Interior of the cave of Altamira.The geological structure favours the collapse of layers of rock which leaves a horizontal ceiling and angular features in the wall. 90005 90004 Photo: Lasheras (ca 2008) 90005 90004 90195 90005 90004 View of the Altamira site, with a dig in progress. 90005 90004 Photo: © Pedro Saura Lasheras (ca 2008) 90005 90004 90202 90005 90004 Bison. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90209 90002 Many of the paintings at Altamira appear to have been airbrushed, a sophisticated technique which may be done as shown.Two hollow bones are used, one set perpendicularly in a container of water and ochre, the other is held in the mouth. 90005 90004 When the artist blows across the open hollow bone, the reduction in air pressure forces the ochre up the vertical hollow bone, at which point it is blown onto the rock surface by the jet of air from the bone held in the mouth of the artist. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90217 90005 90004 It may even have been possible to airbrush paintings on the ceiling using this method, with a little ingenuity.90005 90004 Photo: Don Hitchcock 2012 90005 90004 90002 Airbrush from Altamira 90005 90004 22 000 — 13 500 BP. 90005 90004 Wing or leg bone of a bird (a bird of prey or wader) cut in half to create hollow tubes of the same size, used to blow a spray of paint droplets. 90005 90004 Length: 55.50 mm 90002 Width: 7.64 mm 90002 Thickness: 7.21 mm. 90005 90004 Photo: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http: // www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90237 90002 Bone sewing needles from Altamira 90005 90004 13 500 — 11 000 BP. 90005 90004 This Palaeolithic invention had the same purpose as the current tool: to make clothes, shoes or hats. With parallel grooves made with a burin, thin rods were extracted from the bone which later were perforated and polished on stone to make needles. The smallest ones, with a 2 mm diameter and an eye, prove how well they tanned skins to make clothes, and how thin the thread was, which was probably made of animal tendon.90005 90004 Photo: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90247 90002 Antler harpoons from Altamira, during the Magdalenian era. Used to catch fish, especially salmon, and perhaps to hunt other animals as well. Made of deer antler, with either one or two rows of teeth. Different types of spears were developed to attach these points to, and different ways of attaching them were developed as well.90005 90004 Note the hole in one of them, this was used to attach a cord so that when the harpoon detached from the spear, the fish could still be hauled in. 90005 90004 The simplified designs with one row of teeth was made on the flat side of a large bone, and were easier and faster to make, and just as effective. 90005 90004 13 500 — 11 500 BP. 90005 90004 Photo and text: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90259 90005 90004 90262 90002 Engraving on a perforated baton, 10 310 BP.90005 90004 Made from the tip of a deer horn, with a magnificent stag engraved on it. This was used to straighten either spears or pieces of antler (after heating, or boiling in water) in order to eliminate the natural curve before making the heads of spears or harpoons. 90005 90004 Length 246 mm 90002 Width: 53 mm 90002 Thickness: 45 mm 90005 90004 Photo and text: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90274 90002 This is the best example of making the most of the support and natural materials when painting on Palaeolithic caves.90005 90004 This bison, apparently lying on the ground, or leaping forward in a magnificent charge against an adversary was painted using a natural bump in the ceiling. The cracks on the wall were used to outline its head and body, forcing its posture a little, with the head between the front legs. 90005 90004 This technique which involves making the most of the natural support is quite similar to what important 20th century avant-garde artists would do later on. 90005 90004 (90013 I think of this as the ‘Leaping Bison’, but perhaps it is curled up in death — Don 90014) 90005 90004 Photo and text: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http: // www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90288 90005 90004 Another version of this wonderful work. 90005 90004 Photo: http://coursecontent.westhillscollege.com/Art%20Images/CD_01/DU2500/index.htm 90005 90004 90295 90002 Head of a bison in black. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.cuevamuseoaltamira.com/ 90005 90004 90301 90005 90004 Bison. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90308 90005 90004 BIson, another version of the one above.90005 90004 Photo: http://grupos.unican.es/Arte/Ingles/prehist/paleo/b/Default.htm 90005 90004 90315 90005 90004 Black bison. This has been drawn with charcoal, just as modern artists do. The carbon 14 dating gives a date of 13 000 BP, which is just before the cave collapsed, sealing it until modern times. 90005 90004 After drawing with charcoal, the lines were smudged to give the figure volume on the hump and belly, but with a firm and intense stroke on the front legs.90005 90004 Photo: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ © Pedro Saura 90005 90004 90324 90005 90004 Handprints were created by blowing ochre mixed with water over the hands, leading to the effect shown here. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90331 90005 90004 This handprint was obtained by smearing ochre and water on the hand, and then pressing it on the wall.Both techniques were widely practised by ice age hunters. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90338 90005 90004 Burins from Altamira. 90005 90004 The burins were made on flint flakes, with the end truncated to get a sharp, chisel like point. They were used to engrave limestone, bone, or antler. 90005 90004 For bone, a deep groove was made, which was gone over again and again with the burin until a thin rod could be extracted to make a point for a spear or a long thin piece of bone for a needle.They were also used to engrave art works on tools and other objects, and to engrave the outlines of animals on cave walls before infilling with ochre and charcoal. 90005 90004 Photo: National Museum and Research Center of Altamira © Ministry of Culture 90005 90004 90349 90002 Flint spearhead. The shape and technique of pressure retouch stamps this as being from the Solutrean. The flint was probably heat treated to facilitate the pressure flaking. The entire surface has been retouched.The base on the left appears to have been worked into a shouldered or tanged shape to make attachment to a spear shaft easier. 90005 90004 (90013 Note that the tip on the right of the spear head has been broken off. It would originally have come to a superbly finished point at the end. The hunter must have been sad to see such a beautiful piece ruined. Making a superb piece of work like this required high skill and a lot of time — Don 90014) 90005 90004 Dimensions: 90002 Length 62.41 mm, width 19.30 mm, thickness 6.13 mm. 90005 90004 Date: 18 500 BP 90002 Photo: © Pedro Saura, Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90363 90002 During the Upper Palaeolithic, spearheads which could be thrown with the hand or with a spear thrower or atlatl were often made of deer horn. Bone and antlers are tough, and have a long life, even though they are not as sharp as a flint point.During the Magdalenian era (the last cultural period of the Upper Palaeolithic) they were the main instrument used to hunt animals, although the systems to attach them onto a handle changed over time. 90005 90004 The base, with bevelled edges, would be used to fix the head onto the wooden handle. The engraved marks would enable a better grip for adhesion of the resin or glue mixture used to join the piece to the wooden part, and would be reinforced with cord made of plant fibres or tendon. Like harpoons, they sometimes had engraved decorations or signs.90005 90004 Date: 16 000 BP — 14 000 BP 90002 Photo: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90372 90002 This flint point, carved in the shape of a willow leaf, belongs to the Solutrean period of the upper Palaeolithic era. The piece is finely flaked in order to obtain a symmetrical shape similar to a willow leaf. It would have been attached to the end of a wooden shaft by means of resins and vegetable or sinews and then used as a projectile weapon.90005 90004 The shape of this type of point, together with the details of its flaking techniques, offer clues to its chronology and the specific cultural and territorial context to which it belongs. 90005 90004 Dimensions: length 79 mm, width 22 mm, thickness 7 mm 90002 Date: 22 000 BP — 14 000 BP 90002 Photo: Altamira National Museum and Research Centre © Ministry of Culture, http://www.spainisculture.com/ 90005 90004 90382 90005 90004 Head of a deer.This image is not in the same room as the polychromatic bison on the main ceiling, but in a chamber deeper in the cave. 90005 90004 The head has been outlined in black, without any further shading. 90005 90004 Photo: Guinea (2011) 90005 90004 90391 90002 This face is only seen after going to the end of the cave, and starting back. 90005 90004 It looks like a natural feature of the walls, but was known to the painters, and no doubt had great significance.90005 90004 One ‘eye’ of the face has been outlined in black. 90005 90004 Photo: http://www.quesabesde.com/noticias/nomada-altamira-museo,1_5259 90005 90004 90401 90002 Another version of the face or mask shown above. 90005 90004 Photo: Leroi-Gourhan (1973) 90005 90004 90407 90408 90005 90004 Two more faces or masks at Altamira, adapted from naturally occurring projections on the wall.90005 90004 Photo: Leroi-Gourhan (1973) 90005 90004 90415 90005.90000 The Art of Altamira Cave 90001 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 THE CAVE ART 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 90018 90019 The 90022 paintings and engravings of Altamira 90023 were begun during the Aurignacian period, the first chapter of Upper Palaeolithic art in Europe. The art was created over a period of 20,000 years, between 35,559 and 15,204 cal BP.The cave was re-used repeatedly, with artists either respecting and avoiding existing depictions, or adding to them and using them in new figures. We are left with a spectacular Palaeolithic palimpsest. 90018 90019 The art throughout the cave of Altamira is impressive, but on the ceiling of the Hall of the Paintings it becomes truly spectacular. 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 THE CEILING WITH THE POLYCHROME BISON 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 90018 90045 Bison 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira.Photo P. Saura 90019 This is the main attraction and interest of Altamira. The 25 large polychrome figures depict bison, a hind and two horses. They are between 125 and 170cm in length, while the hind is 2 metres. The figures were produced by engraving and drawing the outlines. Greater detail was achieved by deeper engraving. Most of the figures were then filled with red paint obtained from ochre, although some were painted with yellow or brown paint, again obtained from ochre. In several figures, black pigment was used for shading.The use of colour to capture anatomy was highly selective; to separate the legs from the chest, the haunches from the belly, and so on. 90018 90019 The natural protuberances on the ceiling were employed for perspective and volume (No. 90022 34 90023, 90022 35 90023, 90022 36 90023, 90022 39 90023, 90022 50 90023). Cracks were also used to represent outlines (No. 90022 34 90023). 90018 90019 This grand composition is completed with the large head of a horse (No.90022 41 90023) with the figure of a foal (no. 90022 46 90023). 90018 90019 90018 90045 Hind 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90018 90045 Bison 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 THE CEILING OF THE RED HORSES 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 This is the oldest stage in the decoration of the main ceiling, with animals painted in red, engraved signs, hands and several series of dots.90018 90045 Red horse 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90018 90045 Red horse 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90018 90019 90018 90045 Red sign 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 Eleven large (between 150 and 180cm in length) red figures, mostly horses, were originally dispersed across a large part of the ceiling. None of them include any relief or other natural forms of the ceiling.90018 90019 Near the Hall of the Paintings a very narrow side-passage is decorated with red signs. One sign consists of four irregular ovals divided up internally. Another sign, 3 metres in length and formed by long red bands of parallel lines crossed by small transversal lines, is tucked under an inaccessible rock prominence. 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 MAGDALENIAN BLACK AND ENGRAVED FIGURES 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 90018 90045 Black bison head 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira.Photo P. Saura 90019 All of the black figures in Altamira were drawn with charcoal. This has allowed some of them to be dated by AMS radiocarbon. The age — Lower Magdalenian — together with certain stylistic and technical uniformity (charcoal as the pigment and a linear style) suggests they are belong to the same ensemble, even though they were probably created at different times. 90018 90019 Themes in Magdalenian art are varied; horses, aurochs, bison, ibices, red deer stags and hinds, semi-human faces and signs.90018 90019 There are only four aurochs in Altamira, but all with similar styles. On the main ceiling, a large bull measuring almost 3 metres in length is partially hidden under a polychrome bison. The outline of the forehead and the line of the belly follow natural cracks in the rock wall. The dorsal line is a wide charcoal band with numerous engraved marks. 90018 90045 Black bison 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90018 90045 Black signs 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira.Photo P. Saura 90019 90018 90019 For a depiction of a bison, a natural rock feature becomes the starting point for a composition — a strip of calcite marked in black acts as the horn. 90018 90019 A group of quadrilateral black signs in the final passage were carbon dated to the Lower Magdalenian (15,440 +/- 200 BP GifA-91185). Nearby, and using natural forms in the rock, human-like faces known as ‘masks’ were created with a minimal use of marks to suggest eyes, eyebrows and mouths.90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 THE ENGRAVED CAVE 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 Engraved representations are found throughout Altamira. The red deer is the species most often represented with this technique. One large group of engravings seem to belong to the same family. 90018 90045 Engraved deer 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P.Saura 90019 90018 90045 Engraved deer 90046 90047 © Museo de Altamira. Photo P. Saura 90019 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 90007 90003 90009 90010 90006 90009 90013 THE LAST BISON 90014 90006 90007 90017 90018 90019 The date of this monochrome bison (No. 90022 16 90023) is the most recent, based on carbon dating — 13,130 +/- 120 BP — and therefore represents the work of the last artists. 90018 90019 It displays an artistic style and manner of execution that has matured; a selective application of charcoal, a smudging of the charcoal to achieve shading.90018 90019 With the collapse of the cave entrance soon after — and the impossibility of re-entering the cave — it is intriguing to wonder how this sacred space would have continued to evolve artistically. 90018 90019 → 90022 The Cave of Altamira 90023 90047 → 90022 Bradshaw Foundation 90023 90018 90019 90022 90221 Like us on Facebook & Follow us on Twitter to receive news & updates 90222 90023: 90047 .90000 Altamira Cave — Online Biology Dictionary 90001 90002 Online Biology Dictionary 90003 90004 EUGENE M. MCCARTHY, PHD 90005 90004 The Cave of Altamira in Spain is famous for its Upper Paleolithic cave paintings featuring drawings and colorful paintings of game animals and human hands. It was the first cave where prehistoric cave paintings were discovered. 90005 90004 The Altamira paintings, now recognized as some of the oldest and finest paleolithic paintings in Europe, were discovered by the now famous Spanish spelunker Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola (1831-1888).At the time, cave paintings were as yet unknown to archaeological science. 90005 90004 During the 1870s de Sautuola had begun spending his spare time probing the caves of his native Cantabria, a region in the extreme north of Spain, on the Bay of Biscay. 90005 90004 It was in the summer of 1879, in Altamira cave, after many such excursions, that his little daughter Maria suddenly cried out — «Mira papá! Bueyes pintados!» (Look, papa! Painted bulls!). 90005 90004 De Sautuola followed his daughter’s eyes to the ceiling — «No son bueyes,» he whispered, gazing upward.»Son bisontes!» (They are not bulls. They’re bison!). He saw at once that this was prehistoric art — No bison had lived in Spain in historic times. 90005 90004 The wisent, or European bison (see figure right), is an animal to all appearances identical to the American bison, or buffalo. The two are treated, however, as separate species (their scientific names are, respectively, 90017 Bison bonasus 90018 and 90017 Bison bison 90018). Once widespread and abundant in Eurasia, the wisent has long teetered on the verge of extinction.A small herd survives in Bialowieski National Park in Poland. 90005 90004 When de Sautuola published, at his own expense, a book of illustrations presenting the paintings and drawings he had found in the cave, many people thought it was all a hoax. They could not believe prehistoric humans would be able to produce art of any kind (especially given the fact that many 90017 modern 90018 humans can not draw!). In fact de Sautuola died without ever seeing his claims accepted. 90005 90004 Of course, the fact that cave art is genuine is well accepted today.90005 90004 Scientists are still evaluating the age of the art in Altamira Cave. Recent uranium-thorium dating studies suggest that the paintings were created piecemeal over a period of some 20,000 years, with the oldest dating to about 35,000 years B.P. 90005 90004 Because the paintings were deteriorating, Altamira was closed to the public in 1977. A very few visitors are still admitted, but the waiting time is long. Much easier of access is the replica of the cave which has now been built.Go see it next time you’re in northwestern Spain. 90005 90004 Lascaux Cave >> 90005 90004 More about cave art >> 90005 90004 Back to Dictionary >> 90005 90038 90004 Altamira Cave — © Macroevolution.net 90005.90000 cave art | Definition, Characteristics, Images, & Facts 90001 90002 90003 Cave art 90004, generally, the numerous paintings and engravings found in caves and shelters dating back to the Ice Age (Upper Paleolithic), roughly between 40,000 and 14,000 years ago. 90005 See also 90006 rock art. 90007 90002 Britannica Quiz 90007 90002 This or That? Painter vs.Architect 90007 90002 Francesco Borromini 90007 90002 The first painted cave acknowledged as being Paleolithic, meaning from the Stone Age, was Altamira in Spain. The art discovered there was deemed by experts to be the work of modern humans (90005 Homo sapiens 90006). Most examples of cave art have been found in France and in Spain, but a few are also known in Portugal, England, Italy, Romania, Germany, Russia, and Indonesia. The total number of known decorated sites is about 400.90007 90003 bison drawing at Altamira cave 90004 Cave painting of bison, c. 15,000 bce; in Altamira cave, near Santander, Spain. 90020 A. Held / J.P. Ziolo, Paris 90021 90002 Most cave art consists of paintings made with either red or black pigment. The reds were made with iron oxides (hematite), whereas manganese dioxide and charcoal were used for the blacks. Sculptures have been discovered as well, such as the clay statues of bison in the Tuc d’Audoubert cave in 1912 and a statue of a bear in the Montespan cave in 1923 both located in the French Pyrenees.Carved walls were discovered in the shelters of Roc-aux-Sorciers (1950) in Vienne and of Cap Blanc (1909) in Dordogne. Engravings were made with fingers on soft walls or with flint tools on hard surfaces in a number of other caves and shelters. 90007 90002 Representations in caves, painted or otherwise, include few humans, but sometimes human heads or genitalia appear in isolation. Hand stencils and handprints are characteristic of the earlier periods, as in the Gargas cave in the French Pyrenees.Animal figures always constitute the majority of images in caves from all periods. During the earliest millennia when cave art was first being made, the species most often represented, as in the Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc cave in France, were the most-formidable ones, now long extinct-cave lions, mammoths, woolly rhinoceroses , cave bears. Later on, horses, bison, aurochs, cervids, and ibex became prevalent, as in the Lascaux and Niaux caves. Birds and fish were rarely depicted. Geometric signs are always numerous, though the specific types vary based on the time period in which the cave was painted and the cave’s location.90007 90003 drawings at Chauvet-Pont d’Arc 90004 Drawings of a lean bear or a hyena (above) and a panther (below) in Chauvet-Pont d’Arc, Ardèche, France. 90020 Photo by Jean Clottes; used with permission 90021 Get exclusive access to content from our тисяча сімсот шістьдесят вісім First Edition with your subscription. Subscribe today 90002 Cave art is generally considered to have a symbolic or religious function, sometimes both. The exact meanings of the images remain unknown, but some experts think they may have been created within the framework of shamanic beliefs and practices.One such practice involved going into a deep cave for a ceremony during which a shaman would enter a trance state and send his or her soul into the otherworld to make contact with the spirits and try to obtain their benevolence. 90007 90002 Examples of paintings and engravings in deep caves-ie, existing completely in the dark-are rare outside Europe, but they do exist in the Americas (eg, the Maya caves in Mexico, the so-called mud-glyph caves in the southeastern United States), in Australia (Koonalda Cave, South Australia), and in Asia (the Kalimantan caves in Borneo, Indonesia, with many hand stencils).Art in the open, on shelters or on rocks, is extremely abundant all over the world and generally belongs to much later times. 90007.