Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain, Prehistoric cave complex in Santillana del Mar, Spain
The Cave of Altamira is a 270-meter cave system in northern Spain with red and black paintings in various chambers. The system consists of an entrance area, a main gallery, and several side chambers decorated with animal images on the walls.
A man named Modesto Cubillas discovered the cave in 1868, which sparked archaeological studies. These investigations revealed that people lived in this cave around 36,000 years ago.
The walls show animals like bison, deer, and horses that reflect the daily life of the people who lived here. You can see how hunting was central to their survival and their way of living.
The original cave is closed to visitors to protect the artwork, but an exact copy is available in an adjacent facility. In the reproduction you can experience the art in a similar way to the original cave.
The people who lived in this cave used natural bumps and ridges in the ceiling to create their animal paintings. This technique gave the flat images a three-dimensional effect, showing how creative the artists were at that time.
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