Mask of la Roche-Cotard
Encyclopedia
The so-called Mask of la Roche-Cotard, also known as the "Mousterian Protofigurine", is a purported artifact
dated to the Mousterian
period, 33,000 years ago or earlier, found in 1975} in the entrance of a cave named La Roche-Cotard, territory of the commune of Langeais
(Indre-et-Loire
), on the banks of the Loire River.
The artifact, possibly created by Neanderthal man, is a piece of flat flint
that has been shaped in a way that seems to resemble the upper part of a face. A piece of bone pushed through a hole in the stone has been interpreted as a representation of eyes. Paul Bahn
has suggested this "mask" is "highly inconvenient", as "It makes a nonsense of the view that clueless Neanderthals could only copy their cultural superiors the Cro-Magnons". Though this may represent an example of artistic expression in Neanderthal humans, some archaeologists question whether the artifact represents a face, and some suggest that it may be practical rather than artistic.
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
dated to the Mousterian
Mousterian
Mousterian is a name given by archaeologists to a style of predominantly flint tools associated primarily with Homo neanderthalensis and dating to the Middle Paleolithic, the middle part of the Old Stone Age.-Naming:...
period, 33,000 years ago or earlier, found in 1975} in the entrance of a cave named La Roche-Cotard, territory of the commune of Langeais
Langeais
Langeais is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France.-Sights:Langeais has a church of the 11th, 12th and 15th centuries, but is chiefly interesting for its large and historic château built soon after the middle of the 15th century by Jean Bourré, minister of Louis XI. Here the...
(Indre-et-Loire
Indre-et-Loire
Indre-et-Loire is a department in west-central France named after the Indre and the Loire rivers.-History:Indre-et-Loire is one of the original 83 départements created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
), on the banks of the Loire River.
The artifact, possibly created by Neanderthal man, is a piece of flat flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
that has been shaped in a way that seems to resemble the upper part of a face. A piece of bone pushed through a hole in the stone has been interpreted as a representation of eyes. Paul Bahn
Paul Bahn
Paul G. Bahn is a British archaeologist, translator, writer and broadcaster who has published extensively on a range of archaeological topics, with particular attention to prehistoric art...
has suggested this "mask" is "highly inconvenient", as "It makes a nonsense of the view that clueless Neanderthals could only copy their cultural superiors the Cro-Magnons". Though this may represent an example of artistic expression in Neanderthal humans, some archaeologists question whether the artifact represents a face, and some suggest that it may be practical rather than artistic.
Further reading
- M. Lorblanchet, La naissance de l'Art. Genèse de l'art préhistorique, Errances, 1999
- Marquet J.-C., Lorblanchet M: Le "Masque" moustérien de La Roche-Cotard, Langeais (Indre-et-Loire). Paléo 2000, 12:325-338
- Laurence Nicoud: L'art néandertalien: réalité et énigme. Archéologia (Paris): 407:6, January 2004
- The Mousterian Protofigurine from La Roche-Cotard (France)