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June 10: Lascaux Caves

Took an early morning walk to the castle, which is right at the top of the hill.

The walk from our house landed me at the base of the castle, so didn’t have too many steep bits to do. Someone (not a human) was very pleased to see me.

Then we went off to Montignac to see what’s called Lascaux IV.

Lascaux lets you step into an 17,000-year-old world of prehistoric art- almost exactly as it exists in the original cave – while preserving one of humanity’s most important artistic treasures 

Also called the International Centre for Cave, Lascaux IV is a full -scale highly accurate replica of the original Lascaux cave.

It opened in December 2016. It reproduces the entire cave, unlike earlier replicas that showed only parts.

The original cave was closed to the public in 1963 because human visitors – through breath, heat ,moisture and microbes – were rapidly destroying the prehistoric paintings.

You aren’t allowed to take photos during the tour, but at the end of it, there is a sensational display area, showing each of the cave’s features, allowing photos to be taken.

The photo above traces the elements of the drawings in white, so you can see the real detail.

Lascaux IV is not just a copy—it’s designed to feel like the real cave:  The cave walls are reproduced down to millimetre accuracy.  Colours, textures, and shapes match the original exactly. Even the atmosphere ( darkness, humidity, sounds) is recreated.

The cave had been sealed and stable for about 17,000 years. As I told you yesterday, it was accidentally discovered by Robot the dog.When it opened to tourists after World War II, up to 1200-1500 people were visiting the cave each day, and that damaged the paintings. I was astounded by the vibrancy of the colours.

It was Izzy and Sarah’s last night so we celebrated with another magnificent home dinner, courtesy of Deena, Jim and Robin (as well as an early birthday celebration for Jim).