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SOLTIMES MARCH 2013
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THE SPAINIAC | Altamira Caves | Candice Parsons back to the Magdalenean and Solutrean people, have now endorsed the international fame of these caves as the ‘Sistine Chapel of Paleolithic art’.
The Altamira caves (Altamira translating to ‘high views’ in Spanish), in comparison to the other caves in Cantabria, remain well preserved due to the isolation of their deep recesses and galleries from climate and weather affects.
Another ancient wonder to add to the nation’s pool of UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Altamira Caves lie in northern Spain near the town of Santillana del Mar, nested amongst the mountains of the Cantabria region.
It was 1868 when the hunter Modesto Cubillas first discovered the caves and subsequently informed local amateur archaeologist, Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola, who then began excavations on the floor of the cave’s entrance chamber in 1879. During these excavations,
Sautuola’s eight year old daughter, María, led him to discover the drawings and polychrome rock paintings of animals, human-like masks, and stencilled hands on the walls and ceilings of the caves. These paintings and other discovered artefacts, dating
LEGAL CORNER WITH MICHAEL DAVIES, ABOGADO/SOLICITOR
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From this preservation, the numerous archeologists that have excavated within the site over time, have been able to decipher the various inhabitants of the cave and their daily activities between 22, 000 and 14, 000 BC - some 40, 000 years ago. Running in a straight line of around 270 metres long, the Altamira caves sit 158.5 metres above sea level in the upper part of a karst formation on Mount
Vispieres. The caves have been attracting more and more visitors since its discovery, and increasingly promoting the tourism of the Cantabria region. By 1970, it became apparent that the large volumes of visitors to the caves were noticeably damaging its paintings, and was closed to the public by 1977. The caves reopened in 1982, however with limited access and very few visitors permitted entry per day. Altamira caves resulted in a three year waiting list for visitors, until Manuel Franquelo and Sven Nebel reproduced a replica cave and museum nearby in 2001, showcasing a more accessible and comfortable
display of the replicated polychrome paintings, as well as sculptures not visible in the actual caves. Following experts advice that conservation conditions had stabilised since the closure, the Spanish Ministry of Culture made the decision in December 2010 for Altamira caves to remain completely closed to the public. The replica museum of the Altamira caves, may not feel as wondrous as seeing the paintings and remains of the real caves, yet remains highly impressive in its depictions of humanity’s earliest art and cultural traditions, and gives an insightful enlightening of this fascinating assertion of history.
Candice Parsons is a writer and avid Spain and Spanish culture lover from Melbourne, Australia. ‘Like’ my Facebook page: www.facebook. com/pandemicrhapsody and follow me on Twitter @MiLlamoCandi