Vézère Valley

The Vézère Valley is known for its prehistoric cave systems, containing numerous cave paintings and hominid remains. They are found in the valley of the Vézère river between the communes of Les Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil and Montignac in the Dordogne department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.

Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Vézère at La Madeleine site
Includes
  1. Abri de Cro-Magnon
  2. Abri du Poisson
  3. Font de Gaume
  4. La Micoque
  5. La Mouthe
  6. Laugerie basse
  7. Laugerie haute
  8. Le Grand Roc
  9. Les Combarelles
  10. Le Cap Blanc
  11. Lascaux
  12. Cro de Granville (cro de Rouffignac)
  13. Roc de Saint-Cirq
  14. Le Moustier
  15. La Madeleine
CriteriaCultural: (i)(iii)
Reference85
Inscription1979 (3rd Session)

UNESCO designated the systems as a World Heritage Site in 1979. Among the archaeological sites with remarkable caves is Lascaux.

Inscription as a heritage site

UNESCO description is:[1]

"The Vézère valley contains 147 prehistoric sites dating from the Palaeolithic and 25 decorated caves. It is particularly interesting from an ethnological and anthropological, as well as an aesthetic point of view because of its cave paintings, especially those of the Lascaux Cave, whose discovery in 1940 was of great importance for the history of prehistoric art. The hunting scenes show some 100 animal figures, which are remarkable for their detail, rich colours and lifelike quality".

List of the main sites named by the UNESCO
CodeNameCoordinatesCommune
85-001Shelter of the Cro-Magnon44°56′25.6″N 1°00′34.6″ELes Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil
85-002Shelter of the Fish44°56′38.8″N 0°59′54.2″E
85-003Font-de-Gaume Cave44°56′13.2″N 1°01′35.6″E
85-004La Micoque44°57′27.6″N 1°00′23.5″E
85-005La Mouthe Cave44°55′28.9″N 1°01′14.1″E
85-006Laugerie-Basse44°57′03.8″N 0°59′57.5″E
85-007Laugerie-Haute44°57′11.8″N 1°00′12.3″E
85-008Le Grand Roc Cave44°56′58.2″N 0°59′54.0″E
85-009Les Combarelles Cave44°56′36.8″N 1°02′31.6″E
85-010Cap-Blanc Shelter44°56′44.3″N 1°05′50.6″EMarquay (on the Vézère)
85-011Lascaux Cave45°03′13.3″N 1°10′12.0″EMontignac (on the Vézère)
85-012Rouffignac Cave or
Cro-de-Granville or
Miremont Cave		45°00′31.7″N 0°59′15.5″ERouffignac-Saint-Cernin-de-Reilhac
85-013Roc de Saint-Cirq Cave44°55′33.9″N 0°58′02.9″ESaint-Cirq
85-014Le Moustier (2 shelters)44°59′39.6″N 1°03′35.5″ESaint-Léon-sur-Vézère and
Peyzac-le-Moustier
85-015La Madeleine Shelter44°58′01.3″N 1°02′11.1″ETursac
  • Lascaux, replica in the Brno museum Anthropos.
    Lascaux, replica in the Brno museum Anthropos.
  • Entrance of the Roc de Saint-Cirq cave.
    Entrance of the Roc de Saint-Cirq cave.
  • Shelter of the Cro-Magnon.
    Shelter of the Cro-Magnon.
  • Le Grand Roc Cave
    Le Grand Roc Cave

References
  1. "Prehistoric Sites and Decorated Caves of the Vézère Valley". World Heritage Centre. UNESCO. Retrieved 11 March 2017.

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