I have catagorised this ‘Letter’ as ‘Other Cultures’ and yet it would be more accurate to say that the prehistoric paintings of early man are beyond such divisions. Older than the idea of separate nations, older even than these words, they belong to all of us as part of our collective humanity.
‘Cave of Forgotten Dreams’ is an extraordinary film by the great German documentary maker Werner Herzog that takes us into the cave of Chauvet in France. The art found there is 30,000 years old and yet is so vibrant and alive it could have been painted yesterday.
It was my dream to go to France to see two of the only caves where it is still possible to see original art Pech Merle and the Grottes de Cougnac – a trip I fulfilled this summer…
Such treasure waiting for millennia in the darkness. Illuminated with the swing of the guide’s torch.
As the cave leads you deep under the surface – it is literally a profound experience. It made me think of Gaston Bachelard’s book ‘The Poetics of Space’ and how the environment and placing of the art informs our experience of it.
Pech Merle was first discovered by three young teenagers in 1922: Andre David, Henri Dutertre and Marthe David (aged 16, 15, and 13) They disappeared through a small opening in the rock and crawled for an hour through a narrow shaft, lit only by candles stolen from a local church:
What a magical sight awaited them as their reward!
So, watch the documentary ‘Cave of Forgotten Dreams’ and if you can, go to the caves of Pech Merle and the Grottes de Cougnac to make the discovery yourself:
