A cave system lost for more than 50 years was recently discovered, revealing more than 100 pieces of “exceptional” prehistoric art, Ancient Origins reported Tuesday.
The Cova de la Vila cave is located in the Tarragona province in Catalonia, and was initially excavated in the 1940s, according to the outlet. A team from the Catalan Institute of Human Paleoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES) rediscovered the cave system, and revealed an enormous panel of prehistoric engravings .
The eight-meter sized panel contains works believed to have been completed by humans during theUpper Paleolithic period, roughly 12,000 to 10,000 years ago, Ancient Origins reported. This same time period coincides with the Younger Dryas period, where the globe underwent tremendous and sudden climatological change.
3/10 – El panel presenta más de un centenar de motivos de tipo esquemático, realizados con la técnica del grabado y algunos directamente con el dedo en la pared blanda. ¿Cuál es su antigüedad? ¿Qué significan estos dibujos? pic.twitter.com/yzDqYQFcAn
— Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo (@WhiteRabbit36) March 17, 2023
The IPHES team described the artistry in the “Mediterranean underground gallery” as “exceptional,” both for the quality of the work and the state of conservation, Ancient Origins noted. (RELATED: Dear Kay: I Watched ‘Ancient Apocalypse’ And Now I’m Scared We’re Going To Die Before 2025)
Ancestors painted a surrealist-style series, including “quadrupeds, zigzags, linear, angular and circular lines, and a series of zoomorphs (possibly bovids and equines), star shapes and reticular lines,” the outlet continued.
The site is now regarded as a cultural asset of national interest to Spain. More research will continue to be conducted to figure out what tool was used to create the artwork.