1. Palaeolithic Cave Paintings at Altamira and Lascaux
Aby Gupta
“Theory Of Knowledge”
Australian International Academy

2. Altamira & Lascaux Caves

3. Altamira Cave Paintings
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.

4. Altamira Cave Paintings
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.

5. Altamira Cave Paintings
20th century
In 1902, after the father passed away, the scholarly world realized that the illustrations were authentic.
Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola, father of Maria who had seen the paintings in 1879

6. Altamira Cave Paintings
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 are the most famous. There are also human hand prints and hand stencils (presumably done by the artists).

7. Layout of the Altamira Caves

8. Altamira Cave Paintings

9. Altamira Cave Paintings

10. Altamira Cave Paintings

11. Altamira Cave Paintings

12. Altamira Cave Paintings

13. Altamira Cave Paintings

14. Altamira Cave Paintings

15. Altamira Cave Paintings

16. Altamira Cave Paintings

17. Altamira Cave Paintings

18. Altamira Cave Paintings

19. Altamira Cave Paintings

20. Lascaux Cave Paintings