Saturday, September 16, 2023

Giant Cave of Prehistoric Art in eastern Spain Has Been Hidden Since The Stone Age

Amazing stuff! This seems to be a spectacular discovery!

"... Located at a site called Cova Dones near Spain's Mediterranean coast, the cave holds a wealth of well-preserved rock art made by humans more than 24,000 years ago, the study's authors report, including at least 19 portrayals of wildlife. ...
In addition to several horses and red deer (plus a pair of unidentified animals), the researchers found two depictions of aurochs – an extinct bovine species believed to be the ancestor of modern cattle. ... 
Spain is the country with the largest number of Paleolithic cave art sites ..."

"Archaeologists have discovered a major Palaeolithic cave art site, arguably the most important found ... in Europe. ...
Over a hundred ancient paintings and engravings, thought to be at least 24,000 years old, have been found in a 500 metre-long cave ... near Valencia in Spain. ..."

From the abstract (an unusually very short one):
"This article presents details of the recent discovery of Palaeolithic cave art in Cova Dones, Valencia. The preliminary results reveal a rich graphic assemblage with features that are unusual for Mediterranean Upper Palaeolithic art and were previously unknown for the Pleistocene in the eastern Iberian coast."

Giant Cave of Prehistoric Art Has Been Hidden Since The Stone Age : ScienceAlert



Figure 2. a) painted aurochs head; b) horse head made with clay; c) panel with several motifs painted with clay, including animals and signs (some partly covered by calcite layers) (figure by the authors).


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