Prehistoric Arts: Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain

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Cave of Altamira

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Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain *
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Country	Spain
Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, iii
Reference	310
Region **	Europe and North America
Inscription history
Inscription	1985 (9th Session)
Extensions	2008
Location of Cave of Altamira in Spain
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List ** Region as classified by UNESCO

Altamira (Spanish for 'high views') is a cave in Spain famous for its Upper Paleolithic cave paintings featuring drawings and polychrome rock paintings of wild mammals and human hands.

Its special relevance comes from the fact that it was the first cave in which prehistoric cave paintings were discovered. When the discovery was first made public in 1880, it led to a bitter public controversy between experts which continued into the early 20th century, as many of them did not believe prehistoric man had the intellectual capacity to produce any kind of artistic expression. The acknowledgement of the authenticity of the paintings, which finally came in 1902, changed forever the perception of prehistoric human beings.

It is located near the town of Santillana del Mar in Cantabria, Spain, 30 km west of the city ofSantander. The cave with its paintings has been declared a World Heritage Site byUNESCO.

Description

The cave is 270 meters long^[1] and consists of a series of twisting passages and chambers. The main passage varies from two to six meters in height. The cave was formed through collapses following early karstic phenomena in the calcerous rock of Mount Vispieres.

Archaeological excavations in the cave floor found rich deposits of artifacts from the UpperSolutrean (c. 18,500 years ago) and Lower Magdalenean (between c. 16,500 and 14,000 years ago). Both periods belong to the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. In the millennia between these two occupations, the cave was evidently inhabited only by wild animals. Human occupants of the site were well-positioned to take advantage of the rich wildlife that grazed in the valleys of the surrounding mountains as well as the marine life available in nearby coastal areas. Around 13,000 years ago a rockfall sealed the cave's entrance, preserving its contents until its eventual discovery, which occurred after a nearby tree fell and disturbed the fallen rocks.

Human occupation was limited to the cave mouth, although paintings were created throughout the length of the cave. The artists usedcharcoal and ochre or haematite to create the images, often diluting these pigments to produce variations in intensity and creating an impression of chiaroscuro. They also exploited the natural contours in the cave walls to give their subjects a three-dimensional effect. ThePolychrome Ceiling is the most impressive feature of the cave, depicting a herd of extinct Steppe Bison (Bison priscus^[2]) in different poses, two horses, a large doe, and possibly a wild boar.

Great hall of policromes of Altamira, published by M. Sanz de Sautuola in 1880.

Dated to the Magdelenean occupation, these paintings also include abstract shapes in addition to animal subjects. Solutrean paintings include images of horses and goats, as well as handprints that were created when artists placed their hands on the cave wall and blew pigment over them to leave a negative image. Numerous other caves in northern Spain contain Palaeolithic art, but none is as complex or well-populated as Altamira.

Discovery, excavation, scepticisms

Bison in the great hall of policromes

In 1879, amateur archaeologist Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola was led by his twelve year-old daughter to discover the cave's drawings. The cave was excavated by Sautuola and archaeologist Juan Vilanova y Piera from the University of Madrid, resulting in a much acclaimed publication in 1880 which interpreted the paintings as Paleolithic in origin. The French specialists, led by Gabriel de Mortillet and Emile Cartailhac, were particularly adamant in rejecting the hypothesis of Sautuola and Piera, and their findings were loudly ridiculed at the 1880 Prehistorical Congress in Lisbon. Due to the supreme artistic quality, and the exceptional state of conservation of the paintings, Sautuola was even accused of forgery. A fellow countryman maintained that the paintings had been produced by a contemporary artist, on Sautuola's orders.

Association of the animals in the cave of Altamira, by Leroi-Gourhan.

It was not until 1902, when several other findings of prehistoric paintings had served to render the hypothesis of the extreme antiquity of the Altamira-paintings less offensive, that the scientific society retracted their opposition to the Spaniards. That year, Emile Cartailhac emphatically admitted his mistake in the famous article, "Mea culpa d'un sceptique", published in the journal L'Anthropologie. Sautuola, having died 14 years earlier, did not live to enjoy his rehabilitation.

Further excavation work on the cave was done by Hermilio Alcalde del Río in 1902-04, the GermanHugo Obermaier in 1924-25 and finally by Joaquín González Echegaray in 1981.

Scientists continue to evaluate the age of the cave artwork. In 2008, scientists utilizing Uranium-thorium dating estimate parts of the artworks are between 25,000 and 35,000 years old.^[3] There are also recent discoveries that suggest some of the paintings were completed over thousands of years, not just by individual artists in their own lifetime.^[4]

Visitors and replicas

Reproduction of cave of Altamira in "Deutsches Museum", Munich.

During the 1960s and 1970s, the paintings were being damaged by the carbon dioxide in the breath of the large number of visitors. Altamira was completely closed to the public in 1977, and reopened to limited access in 1982. Very few visitors were allowed in per day, resulting in a three-year waiting list. Areplica cave and museum were built nearby and completed in 2001 by Manuel Franquelo and Sven Nebel, reproducing the cave and its art. The replica allows a more comfortable view of the polychrome paintings of the main hall of the cave, as well as a selection of minor works. It also includes some sculptures of human faces that are not visitable in the real cave.^[5] At the present time, a study is being made of the conservation conditions inside the Cave of Altamira, so it remains closed to the public.

As well as the adjacent National Museum and Research Center of Altamira there are reproductions in the National Archaeological Museum of Spain (Madrid), in the Deutsches Museum in Munich(completed 1964) and in Japan (completed 1993).

Latest news is the caves are planned to be opened towards the end of 2010.

Cultural significance

A modern interpretation of a bison from the Altamira cave ceiling, one of the cave's most famous paintings.

Several painters were influenced by the Altamira cave paintings. Picasso is often quoted as having declared "after Altamira, all is decadence" however, no source exists for this quote and there is no record of him ever visiting Altamira or any prehistoric cave.^[6]

Some of the polychrome paintings at Altamira Cave are well known in Spanish popular culture. The logo used by the autonomous government of Cantabria to promote tourism to the region is based on one of the bisons in this cave. Bisonte (Spanish for 'Bison'), a Spanish brand of cigarettes of the 20th century, also used a Paleolithic style bison figure along with its logo.

The Spanish comic character and series Altamiro de la Cueva, created in 1965, are a clear consequence of the fame of Altamira Cave. The comic series depicts the adventures of a group of prehistoric cavemen, shown as modern people, but dressed in pieces of fur, a bit like the Flintstones.

The song "The Caves of Altamira" appears on the 1976 album, The Royal Scam by jazz-rock band Steely Dan.

The iconic bison image has been used for the cover of the poetry collection Songs for the Devil and Death by Scottish author Hal Duncan.^[7]

See also

• Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain
• Caves in Cantabria
• 12 Treasures of Spain

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ http://mbe.oxfordjournals.org/content/21/7/1165.long
3. ^ http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/specials/artistic_spain/art...
4. ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/3352850/Prehistoric-cave-paintings...
5. ^ Travel Advisory; A Modern Copy Of Ancient Masters, The New York Times, 4 November 2001
6. ^ http://www.euskomedia.org/PDFAnlt/munibe/aa/200503217223.pdf
7. ^ http://www.circlesix.net/shop/songs-for-the-devil-and-death/

Bibliography

• Curtis, Gregory. The Cave Painters: Probing the Mysteries of the World's First Artists. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006 (hardcover, ISBN 1-4000-4348-4)).
• Guthrie, R. Dale. The Nature of Prehistoric Art. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006 (hardcover, ISBN 0-226-31126-0).
• McNeill, William H. "Secrets of the Cave Paintings", The New York Review of Books, Vol. 53, No. 16, October 19, 2006.

External links

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