Next to a meander in the Vézère river, the foot of a high limestone cliff was eroded away, forming a rock shelter. This natural canopy, more than 250 metres long, was used by the Magdalenians several times for their habitats, and later by other prehistoric societies. Excavated in 1863, the site contains many indicators of the recent history of the Magdalenian. For this reason, and as was traditional among 19^th-century prehistorians, their culture was named after this important deposit in the Dordogne.