French Cave Paintings

If you want to get permission to use these for more uses than a private one, we suggest you contact the Minstry of Culture.

Here is the permission statement we received in both French and English, and we are VERY glad to have received it on such short notice, and did not want to disturb things further by asking an additional time for more details.

Monsieur,

Comme suite votre courrier ilectronique du 7 fivrier dernier, je vous informe que M. Jean Clottes, conseiller scientifique du sous-directeur de l'archiologie et auteur des quatre photographies et du texte sur la grotte ricemment dicouverte en Ardhche, a donni son autorisation pour l'utilisation de ses photographies dans le cadre du projet de CD-ROM Gutenberg.

Merci de ne pas oublier de mentionner son nom sur les documents publiis.

Sir,

As per your email of February 7th, I informed Mr. Jean Clottes, Scientific Consul to the Deputy-Director of Archeology and author of the four photographs and the texts concerning the cave paintings discovered in Ardhche, to get his authorization for the utilization of his photographs by the staff of Project Gutenberg's CDROM.

Please do not forget to mention his name in the documents you publish.

Following are the English- and French-language descriptions.

AN EXCEPTIONAL ARCHEOLOGICAL DISCOVERY

A Paleolithical Embellished Cave found in France (Ardeche)

An exceptional archeological discovery has been made public on January 17, 1995, by the Minister of Culture and French-Speaking language (Francophonie), Mr. Jacques TOUBON.

Discovered during December 1994 at Vallon-Pont-d'Arc (Ardeche, France), the cave, composed of several spacious galleries and dens, is adorned with some 300 paleolithical paintings and engravings (dating 18,000 - 20,000 years before present time), which focus on a wide variety of animals including bears, owls, mammooths, rhinos and felines.

The cave has also retained several vestiges of human activities: fireplaces (hearths), entailed flints and other clues which denote an evolution in tools and habits. Totally left intact and untouched by any human intrusion throughout the ages, the cave represents and exceptional source of studies for archeologists.

In the wake of the artistical and archeological interest spawned by this thrilling discovery of national and international importance, the Director of Cultural Heritage has signed on January 13th the proceedings to classify the site. (I don't know if the translation makes sense: a "classified site" is a site which, due to its cultural importance, becomes an official patrimony of the nation.) This urgency measure, taking effect immediately, confers the cave for one year the same statute and privileges which the historical monuments benefit.

In order to ensure the preservation and the security of the cave, the Prefect of Ardeche has also signed on January 13 a by-law prohibiting the access to the cavity.

Paris, January the 18th, 1995

This is the original message we received in French.

Decouverte d'une grotte ornee paleolithique a Vallon-Pont-d'Arc (Ardeche)

Cliches : Ministere de la culture et de la francophonie - Direction du Patrimoine Jean Clottes. Tous droits reserves.

Une decouverte archeologique d'une importance exceptionnelle vient d'intervenir dans les gorges de l'Ardeche, en limite du site naturel classe, en l'espece d'un vaste reseau souterrain orne d'un tres grand nombre de peintures et de gravures d'epoque paleolithique (vers 18000-20000 ans avant le present).