Man of Cro-Magon, troglodyte houses and rock paintings in Dordogne
The Eyzies of Tayac-Sireuil is a pretty village in the Dordogne in the south-west of the France , which at first sight seems to be crushed under the cliff. The village is surrounded by many caves, cavities and troglodyte dwellings whose history dates back to more than 28,000 years. It was here, in 1868, during the construction of a railway, that a shelter in the rock was discovered and contained the remains of the first Homo sapiens arrived in Europe at the Upper Paleolithic, better known as man of Cro-Magnon .
Prehistoric caves around the Eyzies contain some of the most important archaeological discoveries the upper Paleolithic (between 40,000 and 10,000 years before our age) and the average Paleolithic (between 200,000 and 40,000 years old), which have made it possible to update, apart from skeletons, tools, pendants and jewelry and numerous rock paintings. The village of Eyzies as well as its caves are visited by thousands of tourists each year.
Flickr – Melissa Delzio
The Eyzies was, at a time of its history, a small hamlet connected to the Lordship of Tayac. During the 8th and 9th centuries, he probably had a fairly large population, as shown by the numerous troglodyte houses and the presence of fortified buildings that were intended to protect himself from the viking looters. The cliffs are truffled with Watch stations high known as Cluzeaux (in the wall), artificial cavities cut to the limestone cliff, so high that we still wonder how it was possible to dig the rock to such height.
Flickr – niko_67
There are dozens of caves and caves to visit in Les Eyzies, as well as many medieval fortresses built in the rocks, a fortified church and many museums. The village Les Eyzies has some 150 prehistoric sites dating from Paleolithic and about 25 caves decorated with rock paintings.
Flickr – Andrew Batram
Cave of Font-de-Gaume , just outside the Eyzies, has more than 200 paintings and engravings of bison, horses, mammoths and reindeer, as well as some human characters. The paintings, of several colors, date from the Magdalenian era, about 17,000 years before our era. L’ Abri de Laugerie-Basse is another rocky shelter that was occupied more than 17,000 years ago. It is known for its large number of tools and objects that have been discovered on site, including a sculpture of a horse and another with a female figure.
Then there is Abri de Cro-Magnon himself, where the famous discoveries of Cro-Magnon were made. The Cro-Magnon shelter opened in late April 2014 but some other sites were closed to the public for preservation.
Flickr – keskyle70
Flickr – Ben Salter
Flickr – David Martin
Flickr – David Martin
The National Museum of Prehistory – Wikimedia – Didier Descouens
Flickr – dynamosquito
Here is a presentation of the Vézère Valley where the village of the Eyzies of Tayac-Sireuil and the caves are located:
Also read: Rocamadour radiates on the Alzou valley
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