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©TitiaCarrizey-Jasick
©BertrandRieger
©PhilippeRoy
©TitiaCarrizey-Jasick
“If you want to speak about the universal, tell me about your
village! Nestled amongst hills, Montignac is reflected in the
Vézère River while secretely storing the treasures of its past
in its soil. It’s a lively little town. Every street leads to the hills
where men have roamed since the beginning of time.
One of these hills revealed the oldest known burial place,
that of Neanderthal of Regourdou, whilst retaining the
world’s most prized cave-art site at the legendary Lascaux!
What a hill…The emotion is always palpable there as you
will see for yourself if you happen to take the Discovery Trail,
that connects the Hill of Lascaux to the village.”
In the summer of 1940, Marcel Ravidat set out to
find a legendary underground tunnel said to lead to
Montignac Castle.After his dog Robot disappeared down
a foxhole, the young man came back with three friends
to follow: Jacques Marsal, Georges Agniel and Simon
Coencas.They discovered the first paintings by the
light of a lantern…Their find soon reached the ears of
Prehistorians, including the Abbot Breuil.
“The emotion is
always palpable”
Thierry Felix,
prehistorian
The Four Finders
Nicknamed “the Sistine Chapel of Prehistory”,
Lascaux I, the original cave discovered in 1940
with wall paintings an estimated 17,000 years old,
was closed to the public in 1963. The decision was
taken to put an end to biodegradation caused by
overcrowding. The facsimile, an exact copy of the
wall painting named Lascaux II, was opened in
1983. Since 2012, a duplicate on removable panels,
called Lascaux III travels the world over, with great
success. Finally the International Centre of Parietal
Art, due to open at the end of 2016, will be called
Lascaux IV.
Lascaux I, II, III or IV?
A LITTLE BACKGROUND
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24+1VILLAGES OF PÉRIGORD
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