Altamira Cave paintings

In the nation of Spain, three major sites have contained cave paintings on its Northern part. It was believed that the paintings were created by Magdalenian people around 16, 000- 9,000 BC. The first discovery of cave paintings was credited to a Spanish archeologist Don Marcelino. He was the first one to witness these paintings in the city of Altamira. The paintings are engraved in the deep inlets of caves in Northern Spain Mountains. The location far enough from the destructive forces of nature like wind and water and thus only have a little change from the time it was painted about 11, 000-19, 000 years back. The work of art in the caves of Altamira is distinct and it showcases the signs of their domestic life. The wall graphics were not the only thing that was found in the caves. Fireplace, tools and food remains were also available which indicate human habitation. However, unlike the other caves, the caves in Altamira lack dirt deposits. Because of this, it was assumed that the early people living in the city has more advanced source of lighting which gave off less smoke and dirt compared to torches and fat lamps commonly used by Paleolithic people.

Most of the paintings are bison. Fifteen large bison can be found on ceilings aside from other animals and a horse. The bison played an important role in the lives of early inhabitants. Primarily, it was their food source. They also hunt this to create other useful commodities out from the skin, fur and bones of the large animal. The picture of animals has no landscape or horizontal base. Particular on the walls are pictures of bison, deer, wild boar and other grouping which do not normally combined in nature.

What are the tools used by these ancient people in painting? The illustrations were made from natural earth colorants like ochre and zinc oxides. People of Altamira used up to three colors in the body of a single animal. This kind of work of art signifies advancement in the technical skill compared to those of the others. Also, the skill can also be witnessed in the précised physical proportions of illustrated animals. Moreover, many of the animal pictures were painted in natural projection s on the rock surface. Most of the cave painting samples concentrated merely on one dimension yet ignore the natural rock character.

In a lot of ways, the paintings in Altamira are different and exceptional. They used multiple colors unlike most of the ancient people who used only one. They also used the many facets of rocks to create artistic figures instead of painting a flat picture. They also have more advanced lighting sources. Mostly, they ancient people residing in Altamira were fortunate to have lived in caves far off from any harsh conditions and have made their creations stayed untouched for thousands of years. Their unique way of projecting illustrations set them apart from many others. These masterpieces have imparted a lot of information about these ancient people and have helped a lot of historians, archaeologists, sociologists to know more about their way of living.