Mask by La Roche-Cotard

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The mask of La Roche-Cotard is from the Mousterian derived artifact that as a proto-figurine - that is, as a precursor to the Upper Paleolithic cabaret is called. The object was found in 2002 in the entrance area of ​​the cave of La Roche-Cotard . The cave is located on the banks of the Loire in the municipality of Langeais ( Indre-et-Loire department ). The cave has been known since 1912, but the Middle Paleolithic Moustérien horizon has only been known since 1995.

The find was dated to at least 33,000 years before today, but it is probably an older date to the Middle Paleolithic . The Neanderthals are considered to be the manufacturer of the mask . It consists of a flat, triangular piece of flint about 10 cm in diameter, which has a probably naturally formed cavity. A 7.5 cm long piece of bone was placed in it and tilted. The resulting image suggests the eyes of a human (or animal?) Mask. The stone was further processed a little to increase the resemblance to a face. This find confirms that the Neanderthals were already engaged in art. In addition to the mask, other human remains, as well as those of hyenas, were found.

literature

  • Michel Lorblanchet: La naissance de l'art. Genèse de l'art préhistorique dans le monde. Éditions Errance, Paris 1999, ISBN 2-87772-165-5 , pp. 133, 144.
  • Jean-Claude Marquet, Michel Lorblanchet: The “Masque” moustérien de La Roche-Cotard, Langeais (Indre-et-Loire). In: Paléo. No. 12, 2000, ISSN  1145-3370 , pp. 325-338.
  • Jean-Claude Marquet, Michel Lorblanchet: A Neanderthal Face? The Proto-figurine from La Roche-Cotard, Langeais (Indre-et-Loire, France). In: Antiquity. Vol. 77, No. 298, 2003, ISSN  0003-598X , pp. 661-670, doi : 10.1017 / S0003598X00061627 .
  • Laurence Nicoud : L'art néandertalien: réalité et énigme. In: Archéologia. No. 407, January 2004, ISSN  0570-6270 .
  • Paul Pettitt : Is this the Infancy of Art? Or the Art of an Infant? A Possible Neanderthal Face from La Roche-Cotard, France. In: Before Farming. No. 4, 2003, ISSN  1476-4253 , pp. 1–3, doi : 10.3828 / bfarm.2003.4.11 .

Web links

Coordinates: 47 ° 20 ′ 12 "  N , 0 ° 25 ′ 34"  E