Prehistoric Cave Paintings: Illustrated with Photographs
Rebecca Marcus
Hardcover
(Franklin Watts, Incorporated, Jan. 15, 1968)
Dust jacket notes: "Twelve-year-old Maria de Sautuolo liked to accompany her father when he went cave exploring near their home in northern Spain. It was fun to hunt for tools left in the cave by ancient, unknown men. Then one day Maria went exploring by herself and made a discovery of her own. Wandering into a deep part of the cave, she saw a painted herd of lifelike bison charging across the ceiling. Maria's discovery was the first step in an exciting treasure hunt for cave paintings that led from Altamira to Lascaux and Font-de-Gaume, to Mexico, to South Africa and back in time to Cro-Magnon man through the Olmec Indians of 3,000 years ago, and down to the present. Maria's adventures were like those of the priests and explorers who have devoted their lives to the search for clues to solve the mysteries of these paintings. In a crisp, clear style Rebecca Marcus conducts an adventure of discovery. She explores the history, origins, and techniques of the art and the artists, reveals the meaning of their work, and describes the methods used by present-day scientists to date the paintings and protect them from mold and temperature changes. She shows how we, too, can go cave exploring and discover for ourselves the remarkable world of these artists of long ago."