How Long Was Cave Art Practiced For?

Take our mini-quiz and find out

How long was cave art practiced for? (2019/2019) by Fanny Le BagousseGrotte Chauvet - UNESCO World Heritage Site

Was cave art practiced for...

A. 30,000 years or B. 300,000 years

The correct answer is...

A. 30,000 years

In Europe, the practice lasted around 30,000 years. The oldest decorated cave known to us at present dates back to 41,000 years ago (El Castillo, Spain). 

In the Chauvet cave, facing the panel of Horses (France) (2015/2015) by J.PachoudGrotte Chauvet - UNESCO World Heritage Site

When the last ice age ended, people began to settle, started domesticating animals, and then invented subsistence farming. This process of settlement seems to have gone hand in hand with their abandonment of the practice of making art in deep caves.

Did our ancestors draw the animals they ate? (2019/2019) by Fanny Le BagousseGrotte Chauvet - UNESCO World Heritage Site

Let's see if you can answer another prehistory question!

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The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.

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