France - 21,000 years ago

Lascaux

The discovery of the Lascaux cave in 1940 transformed our knowledge of prehistoric art and our origins. A monumental work, the cave continues to fire our collective imagination and moves each new generation around the world.

Visit the website

Cow with collar, left wall of the Axial Gallery.

The guided tour of the Grotte Lascaux takes visitors from room to room, from the Hall of Bulls to the Shaft Scene. Points of interest along the way allow visitors to spend time looking at a panel, figure or detail.

By taking a senses-based approach to the space and the figures, it offers an insight into the talent of the artists by getting close enough to see the grain of the rock. Beyond its emotional impact and in the light of the most recent scientific research, the guided tour is completed by other sequences that help visitors understand the secrets of the artists who painted and engraved the bestiary of Lascaux 19,000 years ago and provide an overview of current scientific research into the decorated caves. More than 300 documents give a bearing on the Vallée de la Vézère and cave art.

Lastly, the site provides information on the measures taken to conserve the site since the 1960s. Lascaux is world-famous for its incredible cave art but also the fragile balance in which it exists and the threat to its conservation.