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--> The photographs were taken by us from the replica of the cave (outdoor). From the replica inside any images may not be made. And the original cave is not open to the public! The replica can be visited, but it must be reserved in advance tickets. <--
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Around two line kilometers, or nine kilometers over the twisty, narrow streets through the lovely valley of the Ardèche between two unusual places. However, the short distance is a journey through time. More than 30,000 years between an ancient cave and its nearly perfect replica.
The original, the World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO Grotte Chauvet in the southern French region in Montelimar, was painted by Stone Age people with thousands of animal drawings. In several phases of the Upper Palaeolithic people wore here with coal dust and Okerfarben on their drawings.
An elaborate copy of the cave has arisen over the past nearly three years. In the spring of 2014, it is opened as Caverne du Pont-d'Arc. It provides interested parties a detailed impression of the strictly protected originals.
Some 20 years ago, on December 18, 1994, discover the three speleologists Jean-Marie Chauvet, Eliette Brunel and Christian Hillaire said after the initiator of exploring Grotte Chauvet. Surprising the scientific and historical significance of the paintings will be recognized in the cave.
Impressive Fresh
The Urgeschichtler Jean Clottes, initially responsible for the research in the original cave and later head of the scientific advisory team for the replica, judged recently as 1994, on behalf of the government, the new discovery: "I was completely surprised at how white, glossy, nice and fresh all seemed. I thought to myself: This looks like an untouched cave And then I went from miracle to miracle. ".
The amazing for many researchers integrity inside the cave can be explained by the fact that their input has been closed years ago at least 20,000 by a rockfall.
Contrary to initial assumptions and later corrected measurements, the drawings are not the first well-known painting of humanity. The much simpler hand figures in the cave of El Castillo in Spain are even older with 40,000 years. Recently, researchers have also discovered in Indonesia at least 40,000 year old cave paintings.
Nevertheless, the Chauvet Cave is unique. It is approximately 8500 square meters and in her, the researchers discovered a combination of special features: The reliefs with a total length of 400 meters, in contrast to other known caves not only hunted species such as horses, cows or ibex.
Among the 425 pictures of animals of around 1,000 drawings are otherwise not to be found Hunters and enemies of primitive people: cave lions, bears, panthers, to rhinoceros.
Selected parts of the original cave compresses the replica on 3000 square meters of area, with walls and ceilings are more than 8000 square meters cave of resin and natural materials designed. Even details such as bones of the cave animals can be found.
Visitors are a risk
Now 35 companies have modeled for 55 million euros, the grotto, on a total of 27 hectares. Thus, according to the architect Xavier Fabre also lessons of the Spanish caves are drawn where the high number of visitors endanger the preservation of paintings. "The cave Chauvet is now closed, protected and preserved," said Fabre, "it would be much too risky, the original for visitors to open."
The French geomorphologist Jean-Jacques Delannoy has worked on the reconstruction of the famous Cave Chauvet in southern France. He is the director of a laboratory for mountain shape customer at the University of Savoie Mont Blanc in Le Bourge-du-Lac in Chambery and is convinced of the quality of the replica. They had been necessary - in order to allow all people a glimpse of the art of the Stone Age.
Exceptional Experience
"Such caves are very fragile," said Delannoy. "Breathe visitor transpire that produce heat. The heat would condense on the walls and cover the crystals as a result the pictures completely. Only with the replica we can share this overwhelming documents of a prehistoric time."
Even for scientists or artists, the replica was interesting because they could get no impression of the originals else. In the replica but one could understand the pictures. "The idea behind the reconstruction is to share an extraordinary experience."
The Chauvet Cave is a "incredibly important" place. After all, the works that have created earlier and later living people be satisfied with these cave paintings "not comparable".
"The way the figures are very different: these are paintings, engravings, charcoal drawings The animals depicted are different than in other caves.." Moreover, it is impressive that you can also get information about the artistic creation of the Stone Age through the cave art.
"Seeing the many traces of the hands and fingers of the first artists is breathtaking. Footprints of a human being, they are still there."
Three-dimensional model of the computer
For the replica of the cave experts designed the original "a cloud of fixed points", tracing the shapes of the rock. These were then combined with 6000 photos. Thus arose in the computer a 3-D model - starting point for the real reconstruction.
The graphic artist and prehistorians Gilles Tosello has realized the famous frescoes of horses and lions. Tosello speaks of a "very, very highly developed art" of the original. "The symbols, the animals tell stories. That's very complex for that time." After countless visits to the original cave he had implemented the works in his studio in Toulouse in three to four months.
Impressed Tosello is located approximately from the lions. "This is what the artist drawn everything from scratch -. Out of my head" In the caves there was light from maybe two torches. The paintings served not as a gallery, but showed parts of everyday life. "These are all stories about hunting, complex symbols," says Tosello.
Spellbound looks a group of lions on a buffalo and a rhinoceros. Some of the potential victims have drawn the cave artists with several silhouettes.
The German filmmaker Werner Herzog refers in its 2010 resulting 3-D documentary "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" to a bison with eight legs: "So movement is suggested - almost a kind of forerunner of cinema."
The exhibition organizers are expecting around 350,000 visitors per year. From craftsmanship and quality of the replica to creators and connoisseurs of the original show convincing. The French edition of the prestigious magazine "National Geographic" calls the copy already respectfully "the other Grotte Chauvet".