Today in History: Prehistoric Art

On this day (September 12) in 1940 Paleolithic cave paintings were discovered in a cave in Lascaux, France. There are over 600 pictures on the walls and ceilings of the cave complex that were painted over generations some 17,000 years ago. Most of the paintings depict large animals, human figures or abstract images (more than 6000 in total). No one living knows why the painting were produced, although it is theorized that they were either spiritual messages trying to ensure a good hunt or memorials of particularly successful hunts.