Location of Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain in Earth
The Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain (Cueva de Altamira y arte rupestre paleolítico del Norte de España) is a grouping of 18 caves of northern
Spain, which together represent the apogee of
Upper Paleolithiccave art in Europe between 35,000 and 11,000 years ago (
Aurignacian,
Gravettian,
Solutrean,
Magdalenian,
Azilian). In 2008, they were collectively designated a
World Heritage Site by
UNESCO.
Chief among these caves is
Altamira, located within the town of
Santillana del Mar in
Cantabria. It remains one of the most important painting cycles of
prehistory, originating in the
Magdalenian and
Solutrean periods of the Upper Paleolithic. This cave's artistic style represents the Franco-cantabrian school, characterized by the realism of its figural representation. Altamira Cave was declared a
World Heritage Site in 1985. In 2008, the World Heritage Site was expanded to include 17 additional caves located in three
autonomous communities of northern Spain:
Asturias, Cantabria and the
Basque Country.
Pike, A. W. G.; Hoffmann, D. L.; Garcia-Diez, M.; Pettitt, P. B.; Alcolea, J.; De Balbin, R.; Gonzalez-Sainz, C.; de las Heras, C.; Lasheras, J. A.; Montes, R.; Zilhao, J. (14 June 2012). "U-Series Dating of Paleolithic Art in 11 Caves in Spain". Science. 336 (6087): 1409–1413.
Bibcode:
2012Sci...336.1409P.
doi:
10.1126/science.1219957.
PMID22700921.
S2CID7807664.