The proof that Stone Age man made great art: Cave paintings of mammoths, bison and bears from 36,000 years ago are preserved for posterity (and replicas made so visitors can see them)
The Grotte Chauvet in the Ardeche region of southern France, which survived sealed off for millennia before its accidental discovery in 1994, contains more than 1,000 drawings dating back some 36,000 years to what is believed to be the first human culture in Europe. They include several animal species, some of them extinct, such as mammoths, bears, wildcats, rhinos, bison and aurochs, as well as 4,000 inventoried remains of prehistoric fauna, and a variety of human footprints and handprints. The opening of the cave, located about 25 metres underground, was closed off by a rockfall 23,000 years ago - perfectly preserving the inside. It lay undisturbed until it was found by three French cave experts and almost immediately declared a protected heritage site in France. Delegates at UNESCO's World Heritage Committee voted to grant the status to the cave at a gathering in Doha, Qatar.
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