Villars Cave
Encyclopedia
The Villars Cave, in French
Grotte de Villars or Grotte du Cluzeau, was occupied during the Lower Magdalenian
by Cro-Magnon
hunter-gatherers. The cave
is part of the French
commune of Villars in the northern Dordogne département. Besides its enormous wealth in beautiful stalactite
s, stalagmite
s and similar calcite
deposits it contains cave painting
s and some engraving
s. The Villars Cave and the Rouffignac Cave
are the biggest known cave systems in the Dordogne.
; after a right-turn at Le Cluzeau one crosses the hamlet and reaches the ample parking area on a hill. The entry of the cave is at 170 metres above sea level, somewhat below the parking area along the left-hand slope of the little stream Ruisseau de l'Étang Rompu, a left-hand tributary of the Trincou River. The cave was formed by karst
ic phenomena affecting the outcropping oolithic
limestone
s of Upper Bajocian
(Jurassic
) age. On the other side of the valley arrives a southeast-trending fault
which most likely disrupted the cohesion of the local strata and triggered the erosional shaping of the similar oriented cave system by carbon dioxide
-laden waters during the Quaternary
.
s were noticed along the entry passage. Yet the cave paintings were only recognized later in 1957 by Pierre Vidal, a member of the speleology
club.
The art work was then investigated and approved of by the expert archeologist Henri Breuil
. In 1959 the cave was opened for the first time to the public.
Besides Breuil further scientific investigations were carried out in 1958 by André Glory and François Bordes, who were followed in 1959 by André Leroi-Gourhan
and by Brigitte and Gilles Delluc in 1970.
the most extensive cave system known in the Dordogne.
The not ornate part of the cave beginning right behind the entry excels in beautiful stalactite
s and stalagmite
s, pillars (i.e. coalesced stalactites and stalagmites), curtains and draperies of all sorts, wall coatings, so called maccaronis (thin, hollow stalactites) and large saucers (in French
: gours).
A steep stone staircase, not suitable for people in wheel-chairs, leads down to the new entry which is somewhat below and farther to the northwest then the original one. A 40 metre long, southsoutheast-striking entry passage (galerie d'accés) leads to the crossing (carrefour) where three different passage ways diverge from. The branch on the right follows a southeasterly direction and is 130 meters long. It is a combination of rooms and passage ways, which begins with the salle de bénitiers (holy water fonts room ), continues in the fairly narrow le passage (passage) and ends in the grand balcon (great balcony) with the grand stalagmite (big stalagmite). The salle de bénitiers also prolongs to the northwest into the salle du chaos (chaos room). The left branch leads to the northeast and northnortheast into the ornate part of the cave. It starts with the 10 metre long salle des cierges (candle room) where the first paintings were noticed, followed by the 30 metre long salle des peintures (painting room) with most of the art work. At its far northeastern end is the exit. The 50 metre long middle branch leads just before the candle room also to the southeast. After the salle des griffades (scratch room) the passage swings into a southsoutheasterly direction and therefore meets up again with the right-hand branch just before the great balcony.
s can be seen. Also some painted dots and traits can be noticed either occurring individually or grouped in clusters.
, the head of a horse
and a bovine. The room ends in a very narrow passageway that was later enlarged to facilitate the entry to the painting room, which meant that some very beautiful concretionary deposits had to be sacrificed.
bound by animal grease. Later on the paintings were naturally covered by a thin, milky calcite coating which renders the traits in blue (like the famous little blue horse of Villars). Yet at the same time the coating has protected the art work from external influences and the Villars Cave does not seem to have the problems that affected Lascaux
. Besides the paintings some engraving
s are also present, as well as abstract female silhouettes, red dots painted with ochre
and some very abstract geometrical signs like staffs, crosses and hooked symbols. The geometrical signs are very difficult to interpret.
Besides horse
s, bovines, bison
s, capricorn
s and a deer
head a human figure attacked by a bison is depicted. The latter resembles a similar scene found in the well of Lascaux (scene du puits).
Cro-Magnon man's presence has left a few traces like knocked over calcite concretions and broken stalagmites. Some lost or discarded utensils have also been found – to name silex flakes, bone fragments (mainly from reindeer), a reindeer
antler and ochre and manganese oxide fragments for painting together with cup-shaped calcite deposits used as receptacles.
. This represents in absolute terms roughly 17,000 years BP
.
Absolute age dating with the radiocarbon method was done by Michel Genty on a burnt tooth found in a fire place below the man and bison. He found a result of 18,000 years BP for the tooth.
The close stylistic resemblance of the man and bison scene with similar depictions in Lascaux and in Roc-de-Sers also indicates an age range of 18,000 to 17,000 years BP.
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
Grotte de Villars or Grotte du Cluzeau, was occupied during the Lower Magdalenian
Magdalenian
The Magdalenian , refers to one of the later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic in western Europe, dating from around 17,000 BP to 9,000 BP...
by Cro-Magnon
Cro-Magnon
The Cro-Magnon were the first early modern humans of the European Upper Paleolithic. The earliest known remains of Cro-Magnon-like humans are radiometrically dated to 35,000 years before present....
hunter-gatherers. The cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
is part of the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
commune of Villars in the northern Dordogne département. Besides its enormous wealth in beautiful stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
s, stalagmite
Stalagmite
A stalagmite is a type of speleothem that rises from the floor of a limestone cave due to the dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate. This stalagmite formation occurs only under certain pH conditions within the underground cavern. The corresponding formation on...
s and similar calcite
Calcite
Calcite is a carbonate mineral and the most stable polymorph of calcium carbonate . The other polymorphs are the minerals aragonite and vaterite. Aragonite will change to calcite at 380-470°C, and vaterite is even less stable.-Properties:...
deposits it contains cave painting
Cave painting
Cave paintings are paintings on cave walls and ceilings, and the term is used especially for those dating to prehistoric times. The earliest European cave paintings date to the Aurignacian, some 32,000 years ago. The purpose of the paleolithic cave paintings is not known...
s and some engraving
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
s. The Villars Cave and the Rouffignac Cave
Rouffignac Cave
The Rouffignac cave, situated within the French commune of Rouffignac-Saint-Cernin-de-Reilhac in the Dordogne département, contains over 250 engravings and cave paintings dating back to the Upper Paleolithic.- Geography and description of the cave :...
are the biggest known cave systems in the Dordogne.
Geography and geology
The Villars Cave is situated 3.5 kilometres to the northeast of Villars and about 500 metres to the northnortheast of the hamlet Le Cluzeau. It can be accessed via the D 82 from Villars to Saint-Saud-LacoussièreSaint-Saud-Lacoussière
Saint-Saud-Lacoussière is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
; after a right-turn at Le Cluzeau one crosses the hamlet and reaches the ample parking area on a hill. The entry of the cave is at 170 metres above sea level, somewhat below the parking area along the left-hand slope of the little stream Ruisseau de l'Étang Rompu, a left-hand tributary of the Trincou River. The cave was formed by karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
ic phenomena affecting the outcropping oolithic
Oolite
Oolite is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. The name derives from the Hellenic word òoion for egg. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 mm; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisolites...
limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
s of Upper Bajocian
Bajocian
In the geologic timescale, the Bajocian is an age or stage in the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 171.6 Ma to around 167.7 Ma . The Bajocian age succeeds the Aalenian age and precedes the Bathonian age....
(Jurassic
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
) age. On the other side of the valley arrives a southeast-trending fault
Fault
Fault may refer to:*Fault , planar rock fractures which show evidence of relative movement*Fault , in dog breeding, is an undesirable aspect of structure or appearance that indicates the dog should not be bred...
which most likely disrupted the cohesion of the local strata and triggered the erosional shaping of the similar oriented cave system by carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
-laden waters during the Quaternary
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
.
Discovery
The Villars Cave was discovered in December 1953 by members of the Spéléo Club de Périgueux after their attention was drawn to a fox hole exuding steam. They enlarged the hole and thus found the entry to the enormous cave system. In 1956 the first scratch marks of cave bearCave Bear
The cave bear was a species of bear that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene and became extinct at the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum about 27,500 years ago....
s were noticed along the entry passage. Yet the cave paintings were only recognized later in 1957 by Pierre Vidal, a member of the speleology
Speleology
Speleology is the scientific study of caves and other karst features, their make-up, structure, physical properties, history, life forms, and the processes by which they form and change over time...
club.
The art work was then investigated and approved of by the expert archeologist Henri Breuil
Henri Breuil
Henri Édouard Prosper Breuil , often referred to as Abbé Breuil, was a French Catholic priest, archaeologist, anthropologist, ethnologist and geologist...
. In 1959 the cave was opened for the first time to the public.
Besides Breuil further scientific investigations were carried out in 1958 by André Glory and François Bordes, who were followed in 1959 by André Leroi-Gourhan
André Leroi-Gourhan
André Leroi-Gourhan was a French archaeologist, paleontologist, paleoanthropologist, and anthropologist with an interest in technology and aesthetics and a penchant for philosophical reflection.- Biography :...
and by Brigitte and Gilles Delluc in 1970.
Description
The show cave is about 600 metres long and consists of several rooms connected by passageways. The cave system not open to the public continues on different levels for nearly another 13 kilometres. The Villars Cave is therefore together with the Rouffignac CaveRouffignac Cave
The Rouffignac cave, situated within the French commune of Rouffignac-Saint-Cernin-de-Reilhac in the Dordogne département, contains over 250 engravings and cave paintings dating back to the Upper Paleolithic.- Geography and description of the cave :...
the most extensive cave system known in the Dordogne.
The not ornate part of the cave beginning right behind the entry excels in beautiful stalactite
Stalactite
A stalactite , "to drip", and meaning "that which drips") is a type of speleothem that hangs from the ceiling of limestone caves. It is a type of dripstone...
s and stalagmite
Stalagmite
A stalagmite is a type of speleothem that rises from the floor of a limestone cave due to the dripping of mineralized solutions and the deposition of calcium carbonate. This stalagmite formation occurs only under certain pH conditions within the underground cavern. The corresponding formation on...
s, pillars (i.e. coalesced stalactites and stalagmites), curtains and draperies of all sorts, wall coatings, so called maccaronis (thin, hollow stalactites) and large saucers (in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
: gours).
A steep stone staircase, not suitable for people in wheel-chairs, leads down to the new entry which is somewhat below and farther to the northwest then the original one. A 40 metre long, southsoutheast-striking entry passage (galerie d'accés) leads to the crossing (carrefour) where three different passage ways diverge from. The branch on the right follows a southeasterly direction and is 130 meters long. It is a combination of rooms and passage ways, which begins with the salle de bénitiers (holy water fonts room ), continues in the fairly narrow le passage (passage) and ends in the grand balcon (great balcony) with the grand stalagmite (big stalagmite). The salle de bénitiers also prolongs to the northwest into the salle du chaos (chaos room). The left branch leads to the northeast and northnortheast into the ornate part of the cave. It starts with the 10 metre long salle des cierges (candle room) where the first paintings were noticed, followed by the 30 metre long salle des peintures (painting room) with most of the art work. At its far northeastern end is the exit. The 50 metre long middle branch leads just before the candle room also to the southeast. After the salle des griffades (scratch room) the passage swings into a southsoutheasterly direction and therefore meets up again with the right-hand branch just before the great balcony.
Entry passage
On the right hand side of the entry passage the scratch marks of cave bearCave Bear
The cave bear was a species of bear that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene and became extinct at the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum about 27,500 years ago....
s can be seen. Also some painted dots and traits can be noticed either occurring individually or grouped in clusters.
Holy water fonts room
This first room along the right-hand passageway can be reached right after the crossing via a descending slope. It contains besides very beautiful stalactites and stalagmites also two fairly big saucers which have given it its name.Chaos room
In the 30 meter long and 15 metre wide chaos room a partial collapse of the ceiling has happened so that big limestone blocks and slabs were covering the floor. Subsequently the chaos was covered in fairly thick and massive calcite concretions. From the more elevated west end of the adjoining salle des bénitiers one has an impressive view of the room.Candle room
Along the left-hand branch the candle room - named after its beautiful stalagmites (candles) - also contains dots and traits but mainly features with some very nice art work like a 40 centimetre bisonBison
Members of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
, the head of a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
and a bovine. The room ends in a very narrow passageway that was later enlarged to facilitate the entry to the painting room, which meant that some very beautiful concretionary deposits had to be sacrificed.
Painting room
The painting room exhibits most of the art work. It is most famous for the fresque de chevaux (horse fresco), the petit cheval bleu (little blue horse) and the l'homme et le bison (man and bison). Yet it also contains exuberant and partially intergrown calcitic deposits.Findings
Altogether 30 paintings have been discovered, their size not exceeding 50 centimetres. The paintings were drawn in black manganese oxideManganese oxide
Manganese oxide is a generic term used to describe a variety of manganese oxides and hydroxides. It may refer to:* Manganese oxide, MnO* Manganese oxide, Mn3O4* Manganese oxide, Mn2O3* Manganese dioxide, , MnO2...
bound by animal grease. Later on the paintings were naturally covered by a thin, milky calcite coating which renders the traits in blue (like the famous little blue horse of Villars). Yet at the same time the coating has protected the art work from external influences and the Villars Cave does not seem to have the problems that affected Lascaux
Lascaux
Lascaux is the setting of a complex of caves in southwestern France famous for its Paleolithic cave paintings. The original caves are located near the village of Montignac, in the department of Dordogne. They contain some of the best-known Upper Paleolithic art. These paintings are estimated to be...
. Besides the paintings some engraving
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...
s are also present, as well as abstract female silhouettes, red dots painted with ochre
Ochre
Ochre is the term for both a golden-yellow or light yellow brown color and for a form of earth pigment which produces the color. The pigment can also be used to create a reddish tint known as "red ochre". The more rarely used terms "purple ochre" and "brown ochre" also exist for variant hues...
and some very abstract geometrical signs like staffs, crosses and hooked symbols. The geometrical signs are very difficult to interpret.
Besides horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s, bovines, bison
Bison
Members of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
s, capricorn
Capricorn
Capricorn may refer to:* Capricornus, one of the constellations of the zodiac** Capricorn * Capricorn , a manga series created by Johji Manabe* Capricorn , Jay Chou's 9th studio album...
s and a deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
head a human figure attacked by a bison is depicted. The latter resembles a similar scene found in the well of Lascaux (scene du puits).
Cro-Magnon man's presence has left a few traces like knocked over calcite concretions and broken stalagmites. Some lost or discarded utensils have also been found – to name silex flakes, bone fragments (mainly from reindeer), a reindeer
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
antler and ochre and manganese oxide fragments for painting together with cup-shaped calcite deposits used as receptacles.
Age
According to Leroi-Gourhan the art work can be attributed stylistically to the second period of his style III which correlates with the Older MagdalenianMagdalenian
The Magdalenian , refers to one of the later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic in western Europe, dating from around 17,000 BP to 9,000 BP...
. This represents in absolute terms roughly 17,000 years BP
Before Present
Before Present years is a time scale used in archaeology, geology, and other scientific disciplines to specify when events in the past occurred. Because the "present" time changes, standard practice is to use AD 1950 as the origin of the age scale, reflecting the fact that radiocarbon...
.
Absolute age dating with the radiocarbon method was done by Michel Genty on a burnt tooth found in a fire place below the man and bison. He found a result of 18,000 years BP for the tooth.
The close stylistic resemblance of the man and bison scene with similar depictions in Lascaux and in Roc-de-Sers also indicates an age range of 18,000 to 17,000 years BP.
Literature
- Delluc, B. & Delluc, G.(1974): La grotte ornée de Villars (Dordogne). Gallia-Préhistoire, 17, p. 1-67
- Glory, A. & Pierret, B.(1960): La grotte ornée de Villars, Bulletin de la Société Préhistorique Française, 57, p. 355-361
- Pierret, B. (1969): Villars, caverne périgourdine, Bernard et Lalorette, Périgueux