Altamira



While waiting for our package to arrive from DHL in

Santillana del Mar, we visited the nearby Altamira cave

paintings and museum. Altamira is absolutely in the

same league with Lascaux and Pech Merle (both closed

this time of year), late Paleolithic, definitely Cro Magnons.

The cave was naturally closed around 13,000 BC, and most

of the paintings are now reckoned to have been done c.

18,000BC. Picasso visited the caves and exclaimed that

"after Altamira, all art is decadence." He had similar things

to say about Lascaux. We figure he was angling for a free

lifetime pass. Above, Vicki outside the museo.

 

The museum itself is one of the very best pre-history

museums we have seen

Like Lascaux, Altamira is really a replica, for reasons of

preservation, but a very convincing one

Mostly animals, mostly what they appear to have been

interested in

Another

My favorite, nearly a Picasso

Another still

Two of the three hands in negative; the really famous one is

at Pech Merle

The actual cave entrance