Overview

What did early humans do with their time? Evidence discovered since the mid-nineteenth century in Western Europe suggests that they did a lot of drawing on the walls of caves. France and Spain have been the centers of an extraordinary number of cave painting discoveries. What is notable and significant about these cave paintings are the archaic depictions of animal life in pre-historic times, which our pre-human ancestors apparently encountered. While the first discoveries were made in the nineteenth century, the most spectacular discoveries were made in the last half of the twentieth century. The discovery of these cave paintings suggests to modern researchers a sophistication and artistic sensibility of prehistoric humanity, which was once unthinkable among anthropologists. This pre-historic art suggests that our ancestors were not only aware of their environment, but were probably very articulate.

Background

Marcellino...