caves of Arcy-sur-Cure
The caves of Arcy-sur-Cure are a series of caves located on the commune of Arcy-sur-Cure, Burgundy, France. Some of them contained archaeological artefacts, from the Mousterian to Gallo-Roman times. Some hold remarkable parietal art, the second oldest presently known after those of the Chauvet Cave. Another notable characteristic of these caves is the time-long series of pollen, related to determined and consistent archaeological levels. Between 1947 and 1963, they were searched by the French prehistorians Arlette and André Leroi-Gourhan. Listed monument historique (Heritage Monument) in 1992, they are partially open to the public.
Arcy-sur-Cure is 30 km (19 mi) south-east of Auxerre, in the Yonne departement. The caves are 1.3 km (0.81 mi) south of Arcy-sur-Cure, on the left bank of the river Cure. At this place the river has meandered through the coral limestone substrate, creating a valley bordered by crests standing 125 m (410 ft) up from the present river bed. The caves are in a meander and on the outer side of it where the flow is at its strongest. Most of them are south-orientated, with the most western ones slightly turned towards the south-east. At that place the erosional valley shows very steep sides, in some parts akin to cliffs. Several caves are distributed along some 800 m (2,600 ft) of the valley's side, at various levels. Following its inhabitants from the Lower Palaeolithic culture in the Pleistocene era, the caves have sheltered Neanderthals from the Middle Palaeolithic (Mousterian and Châtelperronian); those have left behind them circular huts supported by mammoth tusks. Modern humans followed, with Aurignacians, Gravettians, Proto-Solutreans and Magdalenians. All in all the caves were inhabited up to the Middle Ages. They are privately owned by Mr. Gabriel de la Varende, who allows and has actively supported archaeologic research from the beginning. Originally open at both ends, collapsing ground closed one of the caves when the underground water flow sharply diminished. This cave now ends with basins at ground level formed by limestone deposits left by the water. There are several lakes.
Fifteen cavities at various altitudes and of various locations, sizes and contents, are grouped in that bend of the river:
Great cave Lagopède shelter Horse cave, about 60 m (200 ft) long. Hyena cave Trilobite cave, highest among all the caves of the site, it opens between the Hyena cave and Bear cave; its entrance is framed with two natural stone walls. Its name comes from a trilobite fossil found in it by Dr. Ficatier from Auxerre. Bear cave (grotte de l'Ours) Reindeer cave (grotte du Renne) Schoepflin gallery (galerie de Schoepflin) Bison cave (grotte du Bison) Wolf cave (grotte du Loup) Lion cave (grotte du Lion) Fairies cave Two Flows cave (grotte des Deux Cours) Small shelter, Large shelter (Petit abri, Grand abri) Goulettes cave (grotte des Goulettes)
Prehistoric parietal paintings were discovered by Pierre Guilloré in April 1990 in the Great cave, protected by a thin layer of lime/calcite sediments hiding them from view. But engravings of animals (among which several mammoths in the Horse cave) are recorded at the latest in 1946. Unfortunately, some of the paintings were destroyed by regular cleanings of the cave's walls with high-pressurized water sprays between 1976 and 1990. At the time no-one thought that under the black smoke layer – at least some of it having come from torches carried during past centuries' visits –, prehistoric paintings could exist under a thin layer of lime sediments hiding them from view. Made on walls in cave rooms located 300 to 500 m (980 to 1,640 ft) away from the entrance, the paintings are 28,000 years old for the oldest, according to radiocarbon dating measures on charcoal remains
Cave data from Wikidata (CC0). Summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).