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Why the
Altamira Cave Paintings
are special

The large prehistoric paintings and engravings on the ceiling of the Altamira Cave are so impressive that they have been dubbed the Sistine Chapel of the Stone Age.

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Altamira Cave paintings
tips & insights

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Early history

They were drawn sometime between 16,500 and 14,000 years ago. Then, cave life came to an abrupt halt. A landslide sealed the Altamira Cave entrance, preserving the Paleolithic artwork.

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19th century

The cave was discovered in 1868 by a hunter. No one noticed the ceiling images until 1879 when a young girl spotted them. Her nobleman father formally announced their existence. Some leading experts accused him of forgery because they felt that the artwork was too skilled for Stone Age humans. He lost face.

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20th century

In 1902, after the father passed away, the scholarly world realized that the illustrations were authentic.

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Measurements

Altamira Cave is 270 meters (890 feet) long. Ceilings are low. The main chamber measures 18 by 9 meters (60 by 30 feet) in area. It contains renowned animal drawings. Those of bisons (see photo) are the most famous. There are also human hand prints and hand stencils (presumably done by the artists).

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Wait list

Breathing releases CO2, which damages pigments. That's why the Altamira Cave is now closed to the public except for about two dozen lucky visitors per day. There is a 2 to 3 year wait list. Fortunately, the site has a museum that includes a faithful, full-sized replica of the Altamira Cave. It depicts what the cavern looked like 15,000 years ago.

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Name

Altamira means "high view" in Spanish and is pronouned ahl-tah' mee-rah'.

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