The Cave of Lascaux Imagine you three of

The Cave of Lascaux

• Imagine you, three of your friends and your trusty dog 'Buddy' take a hike in the woods. The five of you decide that it would be fun just to go deeper into the woods and see what there is to find. As you are walking, you stumble upon a strange looking rock that is small and dark in the middle. As you slowly work your way toward this rock, one of you notices that the rock is not even a rock at all, it's a cave!

This actually did happen to four boys named Marcel, George, Jim, and Simon was the one with the dog. The dog's name was Robot. It all happened on September 12, 1940.

• The boys and their dog were walking to their favorite spot on top of Lascaux Hill. When Simon whistled for Robot, they realized he was lost. It turned out that the poor pup had fallen into a hole in the ground.

• The boys went home to get rope and a flashlight. As they lowered one another into the dark unknown, they never thought that they had discovered one of the most important caves to man.

• The news of Lascaux cave traveled quickly and people came from all around the world to see this place. All the people walking through the cave caused the colors and details of the art to fade and almost disappear.

• The once bright and colorful paintings could have been ruined by the thousands upon thousands of people going through the cave. In 1963, the cave was closed to the public. Only specific scientists could go into the caverns of Lascaux.

• Finding the cave of Lascaux was like finding a door into the past. The paintings were made with chunks of red and yellow ocher, a kind of clay and mixed with animal fat. Scientists believe they were made between 15, 000 and 17, 000 years ago.

• The artists who made the drawings could not read. In fact, they had no written language. But they recorded their feelings and information about their life through these drawings.

• They may have thought that by drawing these animals they would be able to hunt them. Or maybe they just loved animals. They may have even been telling a story through the images. Whatever the case, we know from these drawings that even the most ancient people believed in the power of art.

Symbols in Cave Art

Symbols

Making our Own Cave Art!

Examples

Lascaux Art

Objectives • • First wrinkle your paper. You will draw at least one large animal. You will include two or more colors. You will include three or more symbols.

Virtual Tour Website • http: //www. lascaux. culture. fr