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Cave.Of.Forgotten.Dreams.2010.1080p.BrRip.x264.YIFY
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This is
the Ard�che River
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00:01:40,218 --> 00:01:42,186
in southern France.
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Less than a quarter of a mile
from here,
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00:01:44,823 --> 00:01:46,848
three explorers set out
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00:01:46,958 --> 00:01:52,760
a few days before Christmas
in 1994.
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00:01:52,864 --> 00:01:55,799
They came along this way.
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00:01:55,901 --> 00:02:00,235
They were seeking drafts of air
emanating from the ground,
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00:02:00,338 --> 00:02:04,570
which would point
to the presence of caves.
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00:02:04,676 --> 00:02:07,668
Eventually, they sensed
a subtle airflow
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00:02:07,779 --> 00:02:10,077
and began clearing away rocks,
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00:02:10,181 --> 00:02:14,743
revealing a narrow shaft
into the cliff.
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00:02:14,853 --> 00:02:16,184
It was so narrow
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00:02:16,288 --> 00:02:20,486
that a person could barely
squeeze through it.
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00:02:20,592 --> 00:02:24,187
They descended
into the unknown.
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00:02:24,296 --> 00:02:27,788
They were about to make
one of the greatest discoveries
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00:02:27,899 --> 00:02:31,960
in the history
of human culture.
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00:02:39,010 --> 00:02:41,570
At first,
the cave did not appear
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00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:43,944
to contain anything special,
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00:02:44,049 --> 00:02:47,883
aside from being
particularly beautiful.
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00:02:53,892 --> 00:02:58,852
But then deep inside,
they found this.
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00:03:11,276 --> 00:03:15,508
It would turn out
that this cave was pristine.
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00:03:15,614 --> 00:03:21,951
It had been perfectly sealed
for tens of thousands of years.
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00:03:22,053 --> 00:03:25,511
It contained by far
the oldest cave paintings,
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00:03:25,624 --> 00:03:29,560
dating back
some 32,000 years.
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00:03:29,661 --> 00:03:33,825
In fact, they are the oldest
paintings ever discovered,
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00:03:33,932 --> 00:03:37,663
more than twice as old
as any other.
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00:04:16,508 --> 00:04:20,444
In honor of its leading
discoverer, Jean-Marie Chauvet,
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00:04:20,545 --> 00:04:25,881
the cave now bears the name
Chauvet Cave.
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00:04:29,220 --> 00:04:31,518
This is the road
in the Ard�che Gorge
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00:04:31,623 --> 00:04:34,387
leading to the cave.
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00:04:34,492 --> 00:04:37,484
It is early spring.
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00:04:37,595 --> 00:04:40,530
We have been given
an unprecedented endorsement
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00:04:40,632 --> 00:04:42,862
by the French
Ministry of Culture
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00:04:42,967 --> 00:04:46,926
to film inside the cave.
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00:04:47,038 --> 00:04:49,302
From the first day
of its discovery,
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00:04:49,407 --> 00:04:53,104
the importance of the cave
was immediately recognized,
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00:04:53,211 --> 00:04:57,910
and access was shut off
categorically.
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00:04:58,016 --> 00:05:03,079
Only a small group of
scientists is allowed to enter.
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00:05:03,188 --> 00:05:06,351
They are archaeologists,
art historians,
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00:05:06,458 --> 00:05:12,021
paleontologists,
and geologists, among others.
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00:05:12,130 --> 00:05:15,156
They are here to perform
their studies together
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00:05:15,266 --> 00:05:18,064
during a few short weeks
at the end of March
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00:05:18,169 --> 00:05:20,637
and the beginning of April.
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00:05:20,739 --> 00:05:22,400
This is one of the rare times
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00:05:22,507 --> 00:05:25,601
anyone, with the exception
of two guards,
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00:05:25,710 --> 00:05:29,612
is allowed inside the cave.
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00:05:40,258 --> 00:05:46,219
The cave is like a frozen flash
of a moment in time.
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00:05:46,331 --> 00:05:48,822
The reason
for its pristine condition
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00:05:48,933 --> 00:05:51,527
is this rock face.
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00:05:51,636 --> 00:05:55,436
Some 20,000 years ago,
it came tumbling down
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00:05:55,540 --> 00:05:57,235
in a massive rock slide,
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00:05:57,342 --> 00:06:00,436
sealing off the original
entrance to the cave
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00:06:00,545 --> 00:06:04,003
and creating
a perfect time capsule.
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00:06:23,067 --> 00:06:27,936
A wooden walkway leads to
the entrance of Chauvet Cave.
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00:06:31,376 --> 00:06:35,005
The narrow tunnel through which
the discoverers crawled
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00:06:35,113 --> 00:06:36,341
has been widened
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00:06:36,447 --> 00:06:38,881
and locked
with a massive steel door
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00:06:38,983 --> 00:06:41,076
like a bank vault.
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00:06:44,489 --> 00:06:48,983
Once we pass through this door,
it will be locked behind us
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00:06:49,093 --> 00:06:53,189
so as not to compromise
the delicate climate inside.
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00:06:57,068 --> 00:07:00,526
For this, our first exploration
into the cave,
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00:07:00,638 --> 00:07:04,734
we are using a tiny,
nonprofessional camera rig.
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00:07:08,413 --> 00:07:10,938
In this first narrow
holding room,
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00:07:11,049 --> 00:07:12,482
we are fitted
with sterile boots
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00:07:12,584 --> 00:07:16,680
and given safety instructions.
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00:07:19,991 --> 00:07:21,583
We have this, okay.
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00:07:21,693 --> 00:07:23,718
Once you've set this
on the rope,
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00:07:23,828 --> 00:07:25,022
you don't touch it.
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00:07:25,129 --> 00:07:27,063
Jean Clottes
was the first scientist
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00:07:27,165 --> 00:07:31,795
to inspect the cave
a few days after its discovery.
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00:07:31,903 --> 00:07:34,667
For five years,
until his retirement,
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00:07:34,772 --> 00:07:38,173
he served as head
of the scientific team.
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00:07:46,784 --> 00:07:50,447
Our guide leads us
down a first sloping tunnel,
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00:07:50,555 --> 00:07:55,015
which ends in a vertical drop
to the cave floor.
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00:09:16,941 --> 00:09:19,136
Since our film crew
has been limited
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00:09:19,243 --> 00:09:20,835
to a maximum of four,
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00:09:20,945 --> 00:09:24,676
we must all perform
technical tasks.
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00:09:24,782 --> 00:09:27,910
In addition,
our time in the cave
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00:09:28,019 --> 00:09:30,317
has been severely restricted.
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00:09:30,421 --> 00:09:32,753
And I will take one light
as well.
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00:09:32,857 --> 00:09:35,553
So it's five past 3:00.
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00:09:35,660 --> 00:09:38,220
We have one hour.
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00:09:45,870 --> 00:09:47,861
Apart from time constrictions,
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00:09:47,972 --> 00:09:51,066
we are not allowed
to touch anything in the cave
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00:09:51,175 --> 00:09:55,305
or ever step off
the two-foot-wide walkway.
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00:09:59,684 --> 00:10:03,017
We can use only three
flat cold light panels
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00:10:03,121 --> 00:10:07,524
powered by battery belts.
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00:10:07,625 --> 00:10:09,923
- You see how,
when they made the passageways,
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00:10:10,028 --> 00:10:13,589
they protected
the stalagmites.
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00:10:16,934 --> 00:10:19,027
It's a nice touch.
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00:10:19,137 --> 00:10:22,971
Inevitably,
moving along in single file,
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00:10:23,074 --> 00:10:25,736
the film crew
will have no hiding places
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00:10:25,843 --> 00:10:28,937
to get out of the shot.
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00:10:33,384 --> 00:10:35,909
The first large chamber
we come to
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00:10:36,020 --> 00:10:39,251
is the original entrance
to the cave.
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00:10:39,357 --> 00:10:42,520
In prehistoric times,
before the rock slide,
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00:10:42,627 --> 00:10:45,687
daylight must have
illuminated this.
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00:10:45,797 --> 00:10:49,096
- So on the left
when we arrived inside the cave,
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00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:51,225
you can see the entrance,
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00:10:51,335 --> 00:10:54,463
and that was
the archaeological entrance.
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00:10:54,572 --> 00:10:56,631
People came
into the cave level,
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00:10:56,741 --> 00:10:58,470
not like us, down a ladder.
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00:10:58,576 --> 00:11:00,373
And then the cliff collapsed.
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00:11:00,478 --> 00:11:04,414
And then we've got the rubble
from the cliff.
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00:11:04,515 --> 00:11:06,312
From outside,
you cannot see it.
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00:11:06,417 --> 00:11:07,816
From inside, you can.
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00:11:10,888 --> 00:11:13,015
Over there, you've got the dots,
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00:11:13,124 --> 00:11:15,991
the red dots.
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00:11:16,094 --> 00:11:18,585
Those are the red dots
which I saw first
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00:11:18,696 --> 00:11:21,324
when I came into the cave,
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00:11:21,432 --> 00:11:25,300
big dots made with the palm
of the hand.
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00:11:28,206 --> 00:11:33,644
Well, here we have... - we have
a big cave bear skull, right?
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00:11:33,744 --> 00:11:35,268
Male, probably.
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00:11:35,379 --> 00:11:41,181
And you'll see many others.
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00:11:45,089 --> 00:11:48,889
You see, in this big chamber,
which is a really huge... -
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00:11:48,993 --> 00:11:50,483
it's the biggest in the cave... -
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00:11:50,595 --> 00:11:54,224
there are no paintings
except right at the end.
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00:11:54,332 --> 00:11:55,924
So this is probably relevant,
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00:11:56,033 --> 00:12:00,163
because when the entrance
was still open,
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00:12:00,271 --> 00:12:02,398
there must have been
some light here.
122
00:12:02,507 --> 00:12:06,534
So they put the paintings,
really, in the complete dark.
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00:12:10,214 --> 00:12:12,546
See here.
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00:12:16,254 --> 00:12:19,587
This is a cave bear
painted in black.
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00:12:19,690 --> 00:12:21,624
The paintings
looked so fresh
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00:12:21,726 --> 00:12:24,991
that there were initial doubts
about their authenticity,
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00:12:25,096 --> 00:12:26,859
but this picture has a layer
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00:12:26,964 --> 00:12:29,330
of calcite and concretions
over it
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00:12:29,433 --> 00:12:33,267
that take thousands of years
to grow.
130
00:12:33,371 --> 00:12:38,502
This was the first proof
that it was not a forgery.
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00:12:38,609 --> 00:12:41,373
- A beautiful horse here,
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00:12:41,479 --> 00:12:44,607
one of the most beautiful
in the cave.
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00:12:44,715 --> 00:12:46,808
And what is touching
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00:12:46,918 --> 00:12:52,254
is that it looks as if
it had been done yesterday.
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00:12:52,356 --> 00:12:57,726
Look how fresh it looks
with that technique.
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00:13:01,199 --> 00:13:03,724
And here we have,
behind the horse,
137
00:13:03,834 --> 00:13:08,066
there are two mammoths,
big mammoths.
138
00:13:08,172 --> 00:13:11,369
And here you can see
cave bear scratches,
139
00:13:11,475 --> 00:13:14,205
and the cave bear scratches
are not the same color.
140
00:13:14,312 --> 00:13:16,212
They look like
they might have been made
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00:13:16,314 --> 00:13:19,715
5,000, 10,000 years earlier.
142
00:13:24,722 --> 00:13:28,021
We are coming here to one of
the great spots of the cave,
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00:13:28,125 --> 00:13:32,459
which is the famous panel
of the horses.
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00:13:32,563 --> 00:13:36,465
It is of the... - one of the size
of a small recess.
145
00:13:36,567 --> 00:13:38,398
And this small hole there
146
00:13:38,502 --> 00:13:41,733
is where water comes out,
gurgling,
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00:13:41,839 --> 00:13:45,434
after there's been
something like a week of rain.
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00:13:45,543 --> 00:13:48,410
And that probably explains
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00:13:48,512 --> 00:13:54,940
why all those animals
were painted around that hole.
150
00:13:55,052 --> 00:14:01,321
It's one of the great works
of art in the world.
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00:14:03,794 --> 00:14:06,786
For these Paleolithic painters,
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00:14:06,897 --> 00:14:10,094
the play of light and shadows
from their torches
153
00:14:10,201 --> 00:14:14,137
could possibly have looked
something like this.
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00:14:16,741 --> 00:14:22,976
For them, the animals perhaps
appeared moving, living.
155
00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:26,243
We should note that the artists
painted this bison
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00:14:26,350 --> 00:14:29,581
with eight legs,
suggesting movement,
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00:14:29,687 --> 00:14:33,521
almost a form of proto-cinema.
158
00:14:44,435 --> 00:14:46,801
The walls themselves
are not flat
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00:14:46,904 --> 00:14:49,839
but have their own
three-dimensional dynamic,
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00:14:49,940 --> 00:14:56,368
their own movement, which was
utilized by the artists.
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00:14:56,480 --> 00:15:01,281
In the upper left corner,
another multilegged animal.
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00:15:01,385 --> 00:15:03,580
And the rhino to the right
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00:15:03,688 --> 00:15:06,885
seems also to have
the illusion of movement,
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00:15:06,991 --> 00:15:10,859
like frames
in an animated film.
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00:15:22,940 --> 00:15:26,103
The painters of the cave
seem to speak to us
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00:15:26,210 --> 00:15:30,237
from a familiar
yet distant universe.
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00:15:30,348 --> 00:15:32,316
But what we are seeing here
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00:15:32,416 --> 00:15:36,113
is part of millions
of spatial points.
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00:15:40,991 --> 00:15:44,722
Today scientists have mapped
every single millimeter
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00:15:44,829 --> 00:15:48,993
of the cave
using laser scanners.
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00:15:49,100 --> 00:15:53,434
The position of every feature
in the cave is known.
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00:15:59,877 --> 00:16:03,836
This is the shape of the cave
in its entirety.
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00:16:03,948 --> 00:16:10,353
From end to end,
it is about 1,300 feet long.
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00:16:10,454 --> 00:16:11,716
This map is the basis
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00:16:11,822 --> 00:16:15,849
for all scientific projects
being done here.
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00:16:20,064 --> 00:16:26,628
- We are working to create
new understanding of the cave
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00:16:26,737 --> 00:16:31,071
through that precision,
through scientific methods,
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00:16:31,175 --> 00:16:35,703
but that's not, I think,
the main goal.
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00:16:35,813 --> 00:16:38,611
The main goal
is to create stories
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00:16:38,716 --> 00:16:43,312
about what could have happened
in that cave during the past.
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00:16:43,421 --> 00:16:44,786
It is like
you are creating
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00:16:44,889 --> 00:16:46,948
the phone directory
of Manhattan.
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00:16:47,057 --> 00:16:51,721
Four million precise entries,
but do they dream?
184
00:16:51,829 --> 00:16:53,956
Do they cry at night?
185
00:16:54,064 --> 00:16:55,395
What are their hopes?
186
00:16:55,499 --> 00:16:56,966
What are their families?
187
00:16:57,067 --> 00:16:59,194
You'll... - we'll never know
from the phone directory.
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00:16:59,303 --> 00:17:00,736
- Definitely.
189
00:17:00,838 --> 00:17:04,604
We will never know,
because past is definitely lost.
190
00:17:04,708 --> 00:17:07,700
We will never reconstruct
the past.
191
00:17:07,812 --> 00:17:10,178
We can only create
a representation
192
00:17:10,281 --> 00:17:14,115
of what alre... -
what exists now, today.
193
00:17:14,218 --> 00:17:15,913
You are a human being.
194
00:17:16,020 --> 00:17:17,214
I am a human being.
195
00:17:17,321 --> 00:17:20,415
And here when you come
to that cave,
196
00:17:20,524 --> 00:17:22,287
of course there are some things.
197
00:17:22,393 --> 00:17:24,224
I have my own background.
198
00:17:24,328 --> 00:17:26,319
What is your background,
if I may ask?
199
00:17:26,430 --> 00:17:29,160
- Well, I used to be
a circus man before,
200
00:17:29,266 --> 00:17:30,893
but I switched to archaeology.
201
00:17:31,001 --> 00:17:32,161
Circus?
202
00:17:32,269 --> 00:17:34,203
Doing what?
Lion tamer?
203
00:17:34,305 --> 00:17:36,569
- Well, mostly... -
not lion tamer,
204
00:17:36,674 --> 00:17:40,940
but mostly unicycle
and juggling, yeah.
205
00:17:41,045 --> 00:17:44,378
The first time I entered
to Chauvet Cave,
206
00:17:44,482 --> 00:17:48,384
I had a chance to get in
during five days,
207
00:17:48,486 --> 00:17:51,216
and it was so powerful.
208
00:17:51,322 --> 00:17:56,089
Then every night,
I was dreaming of lions.
209
00:17:56,193 --> 00:18:00,186
And every day was
the same shock for me.
210
00:18:00,297 --> 00:18:02,060
It was an emotional shock.
211
00:18:02,166 --> 00:18:05,932
I mean, I'm a scientist
but a human too.
212
00:18:06,036 --> 00:18:10,803
And after five days, I decided
not to go back in the cave,
213
00:18:10,908 --> 00:18:17,575
because I needed time
just to relax and take time to... -
214
00:18:17,681 --> 00:18:18,648
To absorb it?
215
00:18:18,749 --> 00:18:20,512
- To absorb it, yeah.
Yeah.
216
00:18:20,618 --> 00:18:23,382
And you dreamt
not of paintings of lions
217
00:18:23,487 --> 00:18:25,011
but of real lions.
218
00:18:25,122 --> 00:18:28,250
- Of both, of both, definitely.
219
00:18:28,359 --> 00:18:29,656
Yeah.
220
00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:31,660
And you were afraid
in your dreams?
221
00:18:31,762 --> 00:18:33,195
- I was not afraid, no.
222
00:18:33,297 --> 00:18:34,491
No, no, I was not afraid.
223
00:18:34,598 --> 00:18:42,801
It was more a feeling of
powerful things and deep things,
224
00:18:42,907 --> 00:18:50,678
a way to understand things
which is not a direct way.
225
00:18:50,781 --> 00:18:52,043
- Uh, sorry.
226
00:18:52,149 --> 00:18:54,140
Silence, please.
227
00:18:54,251 --> 00:18:55,878
Please don't move.
228
00:18:55,986 --> 00:18:58,955
We're going to listen
to the silence in the cave,
229
00:18:59,056 --> 00:19:04,221
and perhaps we can even hear
our own heartbeats.
230
00:22:29,401 --> 00:22:31,028
These images
are memories
231
00:22:31,136 --> 00:22:35,095
of long-forgotten dreams.
232
00:22:35,206 --> 00:22:40,405
Is this their heartbeat
or ours?
233
00:22:40,512 --> 00:22:43,345
Will we ever be able
to understand the vision
234
00:22:43,448 --> 00:22:48,317
of the artists
across such an abyss of time?
235
00:22:52,624 --> 00:22:57,891
There is an aura of melodrame
in this landscape.
236
00:22:57,996 --> 00:23:01,432
It could be straight out
of a Wagner opera
237
00:23:01,533 --> 00:23:05,299
or a painting
of German Romanticists.
238
00:23:05,403 --> 00:23:09,737
Could this be our connection
to them?
239
00:23:09,841 --> 00:23:13,572
This staging of a landscape
as an operatic event
240
00:23:13,678 --> 00:23:17,273
does not belong
to the Romanticists alone.
241
00:23:17,382 --> 00:23:20,374
Stone Age men might have had
a similar sense
242
00:23:20,485 --> 00:23:23,511
of inner landscapes,
and it seems natural
243
00:23:23,622 --> 00:23:26,887
that there's a whole cluster
of Paleolithic caves
244
00:23:26,992 --> 00:23:28,687
right around here.
245
00:23:30,061 --> 00:23:33,155
- The Chauvet Cave is just here
at the top of this cliff,
246
00:23:33,264 --> 00:23:36,597
but the Chauvet Cave
is also associated
247
00:23:36,701 --> 00:23:38,259
to this natural feature,
248
00:23:38,370 --> 00:23:42,466
this beautiful arch
called Pont d'Arc.
249
00:23:42,574 --> 00:23:47,375
Maybe this Pont d'Arc,
in the mythology of the people,
250
00:23:47,479 --> 00:23:51,882
was not only a landmark
but a mark also
251
00:23:51,983 --> 00:23:55,214
in the imagination,
in the stories,
252
00:23:55,320 --> 00:23:56,719
in the mythology
253
00:23:56,821 --> 00:24:00,552
that was important for them
to understand the world.
254
00:24:00,659 --> 00:24:03,719
But what kind
of world was it
255
00:24:03,828 --> 00:24:06,353
for Paleolithic people
back then?
256
00:24:06,464 --> 00:24:10,127
- 35,000 years ago,
the Europe... -
257
00:24:10,235 --> 00:24:14,797
Europe was covered by glaciers,
and in this glacial Europe,
258
00:24:14,906 --> 00:24:21,141
you have to imagine a climate
dry, cold, but with sun also.
259
00:24:21,246 --> 00:24:22,645
That was important.
260
00:24:22,747 --> 00:24:25,739
In this place, for example,
261
00:24:25,850 --> 00:24:27,909
you have to imagine
woolly rhinos,
262
00:24:28,019 --> 00:24:29,782
mammoths along the rivers.
263
00:24:29,888 --> 00:24:31,515
In the forest,
264
00:24:31,623 --> 00:24:37,061
you had Megaloceros deers,
horses, reindeers, bisons,
265
00:24:37,162 --> 00:24:40,461
and also ibex
or the antelopes moving.
266
00:24:40,565 --> 00:24:42,533
So it was very rich.
267
00:24:42,634 --> 00:24:44,932
The biomass
in this part of Europe
268
00:24:45,036 --> 00:24:47,129
was very important
269
00:24:47,238 --> 00:24:50,537
for the development of human
but also carnivores.
270
00:24:50,642 --> 00:24:54,976
So you have to imagine
lions, bears, leopards,
271
00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:59,574
wolves,
foxes in very large numbers.
272
00:24:59,684 --> 00:25:04,815
And among all these carnivores
and predators, human.
273
00:25:04,923 --> 00:25:08,484
Could it be how they
set up fires in Chauvet Cave?
274
00:25:08,593 --> 00:25:11,721
There's evidence that they cast
their own shadows
275
00:25:11,830 --> 00:25:15,061
against the panels of horses,
for example.
276
00:25:15,166 --> 00:25:18,624
- The fire were necessary
to look at the paintings
277
00:25:18,737 --> 00:25:22,901
and maybe towards
staging people around.
278
00:25:23,007 --> 00:25:26,170
When you look with the flame,
with moving light,
279
00:25:26,277 --> 00:25:29,337
you can imagine people dancing
with the shadows.
280
00:25:29,447 --> 00:25:30,505
Like Fred Astaire.
281
00:25:30,615 --> 00:25:32,207
- Fred Astaire, yes.
282
00:25:32,317 --> 00:25:36,185
I think that this image
dancing with this shadow
283
00:25:36,287 --> 00:25:41,623
is a very strong and old images
of human representation,
284
00:25:41,726 --> 00:25:44,524
because the first representation
was the walls,
285
00:25:44,629 --> 00:25:47,291
the white wall
and the black shadow.
286
00:26:07,218 --> 00:26:09,482
The presence of humans
in the cave
287
00:26:09,587 --> 00:26:13,216
was fleeting like shadows.
288
00:26:13,324 --> 00:26:16,350
Bear skulls everywhere,
289
00:26:16,461 --> 00:26:19,191
but these skulls belong
to the cave bear,
290
00:26:19,297 --> 00:26:23,131
a species, like the mammoth
and the woolly rhino,
291
00:26:23,234 --> 00:26:27,227
that vanished from the face
of the Earth long ago.
292
00:26:36,281 --> 00:26:40,342
Tens of thousands of years
of patient water dripping
293
00:26:40,451 --> 00:26:45,081
has left a thick coating
of calcite on this skull.
294
00:26:45,190 --> 00:26:49,024
It now has the appearance
of a porcelain sculpture.
295
00:27:09,881 --> 00:27:12,315
In all this menagerie of bones,
296
00:27:12,417 --> 00:27:16,148
there's not a single
human specimen.
297
00:27:16,254 --> 00:27:21,590
Scientists have determined that
humans never lived in the cave.
298
00:27:21,693 --> 00:27:28,622
They used it only for painting
and possibly ceremonies.
299
00:27:28,733 --> 00:27:33,067
Michel Philipe has studied
the bones of Chauvet Cave.
300
00:27:35,707 --> 00:27:37,766
Caves
constitute a favorable place
301
00:27:37,876 --> 00:27:39,571
for the preservation of bones.
302
00:27:39,677 --> 00:27:42,339
As the result,
there are a lot of bear bones.
303
00:27:42,447 --> 00:27:46,042
Overall, this represents
99% of the finds,
304
00:27:46,150 --> 00:27:47,674
but there are also some wolves.
305
00:27:47,785 --> 00:27:50,379
We have two skulls
and have several bones.
306
00:27:50,488 --> 00:27:52,513
We have a few ibexes.
307
00:27:52,624 --> 00:27:55,491
We have a magnificent skull
on the wet sand with calcite,
308
00:27:55,593 --> 00:27:57,618
quite lovely.
309
00:27:57,729 --> 00:27:59,253
When you shine light on it,
310
00:27:59,364 --> 00:28:01,764
they are calcite crystals
that glisten.
311
00:28:01,866 --> 00:28:03,390
It's truly quite lovely.
312
00:28:03,501 --> 00:28:05,366
There are some horses as well.
313
00:28:05,470 --> 00:28:07,335
There is a cave hyena.
314
00:28:07,438 --> 00:28:09,269
What else is there?
315
00:28:09,374 --> 00:28:11,740
There's also an eagle skeleton,
316
00:28:11,843 --> 00:28:15,870
a golden eagle,
practically whole,
317
00:28:15,980 --> 00:28:17,641
but it may be
a little more recent,
318
00:28:17,749 --> 00:28:19,478
carried in by the run of water
319
00:28:19,584 --> 00:28:22,815
and wedged against the big rocks
at the edge of the waterway.
320
00:28:22,921 --> 00:28:24,582
So you can see its bones
spread out
321
00:28:24,689 --> 00:28:26,816
over ten feet in length.
322
00:28:26,925 --> 00:28:29,359
Our goal is not only to say
what bones there are,
323
00:28:29,460 --> 00:28:32,156
but we also try to understand
if they lived there,
324
00:28:32,263 --> 00:28:35,198
if they were moved,
how they were transported.
325
00:28:35,300 --> 00:28:37,097
Did the bears bring the bones?
326
00:28:37,201 --> 00:28:39,897
There are several bones that
have been chewed on a little.
327
00:28:40,004 --> 00:28:44,498
So it could have been the bears
or the hyenas.
328
00:28:47,478 --> 00:28:49,036
All the scientists
are lodged
329
00:28:49,147 --> 00:28:53,379
in a nearby sports complex.
330
00:28:53,484 --> 00:28:56,282
Although they each have
their special field,
331
00:28:56,387 --> 00:29:01,256
they compare and combine
their findings.
332
00:29:01,359 --> 00:29:04,453
We were interested in the work
of these two.
333
00:29:04,562 --> 00:29:09,727
Carole, Gilles, can you explain
about what you're doing here?
334
00:29:09,834 --> 00:29:10,766
- Yeah, oui.
335
00:29:13,204 --> 00:29:14,501
In the cave,
336
00:29:14,605 --> 00:29:16,300
we are trying to reveal
the contours
337
00:29:16,407 --> 00:29:17,874
of underlying designs
338
00:29:17,976 --> 00:29:20,536
that are hard to follow
with the naked eye.
339
00:29:20,645 --> 00:29:23,443
Because we are not supposed
to touch the wall,
340
00:29:23,548 --> 00:29:28,576
we take a series of photos that
we put together in a mosaic.
341
00:29:28,686 --> 00:29:31,746
We are trying to achieve
a maximum of detail.
342
00:29:31,856 --> 00:29:34,154
Then we take a transparency,
343
00:29:34,258 --> 00:29:36,226
and we put it
on top of the photo.
344
00:29:36,327 --> 00:29:39,956
And then we trace
the underlayers of engravings.
345
00:29:40,064 --> 00:29:44,160
Later, we return to the cave
and check against the contours
346
00:29:44,268 --> 00:29:46,668
all the designs that we can see
347
00:29:46,771 --> 00:29:49,296
and all the markings
of the bears as well
348
00:29:49,407 --> 00:29:53,537
so that we can understand
each figure and event.
349
00:29:53,644 --> 00:29:55,168
We have bear scratches
350
00:29:55,279 --> 00:29:58,680
and then a magnificent drawing
of a mammoth done by finger
351
00:29:58,783 --> 00:30:01,217
and other scratches
done over the mammoth.
352
00:30:01,319 --> 00:30:03,184
So their succession
is very important
353
00:30:03,287 --> 00:30:05,687
to understand what took place.
354
00:30:05,790 --> 00:30:09,191
On the computer,
one can see three phases.
355
00:30:09,293 --> 00:30:12,421
The first dates 40,000 years
back in time,
356
00:30:12,530 --> 00:30:16,227
the one when the bear
scratched the walls.
357
00:30:16,334 --> 00:30:18,768
Then a second phase
with drawings
358
00:30:18,870 --> 00:30:21,134
stretching over eight feet
in height,
359
00:30:21,239 --> 00:30:25,107
therefore made with a stick,
followed by the main phase
360
00:30:25,209 --> 00:30:30,340
sometime around 33,000 years
or less.
361
00:30:30,448 --> 00:30:33,178
It starts
with the scraping of the wall
362
00:30:33,284 --> 00:30:35,081
to get to the white of the rock.
363
00:30:35,186 --> 00:30:37,518
After that, the first figures
were put in place.
364
00:30:37,622 --> 00:30:39,419
These were the two rhinos
attacking one another
365
00:30:39,524 --> 00:30:40,957
at the bottom.
366
00:30:41,059 --> 00:30:43,584
After that came
the three bulls.
367
00:30:43,694 --> 00:30:46,356
- And finally, they ended
368
00:30:46,464 --> 00:30:49,695
with a series of horses
going from top to bottom
369
00:30:49,801 --> 00:30:53,669
and, in the final phase,
adding this very beautiful horse
370
00:30:53,771 --> 00:30:57,798
that confronts the viewers
when they arrive in the cave.
371
00:30:57,909 --> 00:31:00,002
- When you do a synthesis
of the composition,
372
00:31:00,111 --> 00:31:02,545
there is a kind of dynamic
circular movement
373
00:31:02,647 --> 00:31:04,410
going from the bottom
to the right,
374
00:31:04,515 --> 00:31:06,540
towards the center,
like a circle.
375
00:31:06,651 --> 00:31:09,313
It obviously creates
a very strong dynamic
376
00:31:09,420 --> 00:31:10,751
that is reinforced here
377
00:31:10,855 --> 00:31:14,188
by the oblique movement
of the horses.
378
00:31:14,292 --> 00:31:16,351
- It's the force
of the contrast,
379
00:31:16,461 --> 00:31:18,759
the fact that they've played
with the contrast
380
00:31:18,863 --> 00:31:21,889
and with the shape of the wall.
381
00:31:27,939 --> 00:31:29,304
It's like an easel.
382
00:31:29,407 --> 00:31:32,171
They've used the surface,
made use of the material,
383
00:31:32,276 --> 00:31:37,043
and mixed material to create
this very strong impression.
384
00:31:39,684 --> 00:31:43,085
By comparing
all the paintings in the cave,
385
00:31:43,187 --> 00:31:46,122
it seems certain
that the horses of this panel
386
00:31:46,224 --> 00:31:51,787
were created
by one single individual.
387
00:31:51,896 --> 00:31:55,332
But in the immediate vicinity
of the horses,
388
00:31:55,433 --> 00:32:00,302
there are figures of animals
overlapping with each other.
389
00:32:00,404 --> 00:32:01,962
The striking point here
390
00:32:02,073 --> 00:32:06,339
is that in cases like this,
after carbon dating,
391
00:32:06,444 --> 00:32:08,344
there are strong indications
392
00:32:08,446 --> 00:32:10,812
that some overlapping figures
were drawn
393
00:32:10,915 --> 00:32:14,476
almost 5,000 years apart.
394
00:32:17,588 --> 00:32:20,022
The sequence
and duration of time
395
00:32:20,124 --> 00:32:23,491
is unimaginable for us today.
396
00:32:23,594 --> 00:32:28,861
We are locked in history,
and they were not.
397
00:32:31,802 --> 00:32:34,066
Despite this blurring of time
398
00:32:34,172 --> 00:32:36,402
and the anonymity
of the artists,
399
00:32:36,507 --> 00:32:42,844
there's one individual
who can be singled out.
400
00:32:42,947 --> 00:32:46,747
Dominique Baffier is a scholar
of Paleolithic culture.
401
00:32:46,851 --> 00:32:51,345
Here on the right, she examines
the cluster of palm prints
402
00:32:51,455 --> 00:32:54,424
with her colleague
Val�rie Feruglio.
403
00:33:00,531 --> 00:33:02,226
We are currently working
404
00:33:02,333 --> 00:33:03,425
on this large panel
405
00:33:03,534 --> 00:33:06,002
that was covered
with positive handprints.
406
00:33:06,103 --> 00:33:08,503
We've been able to put forward,
as evidence,
407
00:33:08,606 --> 00:33:11,370
the number of positions
the individual assumed
408
00:33:11,475 --> 00:33:13,375
and his movements.
409
00:33:13,477 --> 00:33:18,005
He started by crouching,
and then he stretched out
410
00:33:18,115 --> 00:33:20,777
to reach all the way
to his highest palm prints.
411
00:33:20,885 --> 00:33:24,616
This panel is comprised
of the prints of a single man
412
00:33:24,722 --> 00:33:28,749
who must have measured
roughly six feet tall.
413
00:33:28,859 --> 00:33:30,793
A single human.
414
00:33:30,895 --> 00:33:33,227
- 1 meter 80 tall, that's big.
415
00:33:33,331 --> 00:33:35,094
Was it only one person?
416
00:33:35,199 --> 00:33:36,496
- Une personne, une personne.
417
00:33:36,601 --> 00:33:40,264
One person,
a person measuring six feet.
418
00:33:40,371 --> 00:33:42,168
And you'll notice
on these prints
419
00:33:42,273 --> 00:33:44,935
that there is
a very significant detail.
420
00:33:45,042 --> 00:33:47,943
He has a slightly crooked
little finger.
421
00:33:48,045 --> 00:33:49,410
And that's extraordinary,
422
00:33:49,513 --> 00:33:51,879
because it gives
a physical reality
423
00:33:51,983 --> 00:33:56,477
to a prehistoric individual
who, 32,000 years or more ago,
424
00:33:56,587 --> 00:33:59,715
came to the cave before us.
425
00:33:59,824 --> 00:34:02,315
And what is even more surprising
426
00:34:02,426 --> 00:34:05,725
is that you'll find traces
of him deeper in the cavern.
427
00:34:05,830 --> 00:34:09,266
We'll be able to recognize him
by his crooked little finger,
428
00:34:09,367 --> 00:34:12,598
because he printed his hand
farther in the cave.
429
00:34:12,703 --> 00:34:16,332
So we can follow
this man's path.
430
00:34:19,410 --> 00:34:22,004
Madame Baffier
took us on a tour.
431
00:34:22,113 --> 00:34:25,412
She serves as the custodian
of the cave,
432
00:34:25,516 --> 00:34:27,711
and her rules of engagement
are strict
433
00:34:27,818 --> 00:34:29,581
but entirely reasonable
434
00:34:29,687 --> 00:34:32,520
given the precious
and fragile nature
435
00:34:32,623 --> 00:34:35,217
of this unique place.
436
00:34:42,033 --> 00:34:44,558
- You have cave bear tracks,
437
00:34:44,669 --> 00:34:47,331
the forepaws and hind paws.
438
00:34:47,438 --> 00:34:50,100
These are the longest
cave bear tracks
439
00:34:50,207 --> 00:34:53,699
currently known in any cave.
440
00:35:12,530 --> 00:35:14,259
It's very sparkly.
441
00:35:14,365 --> 00:35:17,732
There are crystals
that glitter.
442
00:35:31,482 --> 00:35:36,351
Here at this junction, we have
the panel of the panther.
443
00:35:36,454 --> 00:35:38,547
You can see the drawing
of a panther,
444
00:35:38,656 --> 00:35:41,921
which is the only one known
in Paleolithic wall painting
445
00:35:42,026 --> 00:35:44,017
to date.
446
00:35:51,268 --> 00:35:53,168
Here we've arrived at a place
447
00:35:53,270 --> 00:35:57,036
where concretion growth
has been very important.
448
00:35:57,141 --> 00:36:00,372
On the ground and walls,
you can see
449
00:36:00,478 --> 00:36:04,380
that rimstone calcite ridges
have covered everything
450
00:36:04,482 --> 00:36:09,715
in sparkling formation,
a kind of cascade...
451
00:36:20,431 --> 00:36:23,764
With waves.
452
00:36:39,116 --> 00:36:43,143
Here you have... - take a look... -
a bear vertebra
453
00:36:43,254 --> 00:36:46,314
which is entirely coated
in calcite
454
00:36:46,424 --> 00:36:50,554
and held by calcite crystals.
455
00:36:56,801 --> 00:36:59,497
In front of us, on the wall,
456
00:36:59,603 --> 00:37:04,438
you also have an overflowing
drapery-like concretion
457
00:37:04,542 --> 00:37:07,102
and here a kind of niche
458
00:37:07,211 --> 00:37:11,147
where you can see the traces
of ancient red paintings,
459
00:37:11,248 --> 00:37:14,513
which have been washed away
by water seepage.
460
00:37:14,618 --> 00:37:19,317
And this is where you find
extremely original images,
461
00:37:19,423 --> 00:37:22,324
like this insect-shaped one
462
00:37:22,426 --> 00:37:25,054
or this one shaped like
a butterfly
463
00:37:25,162 --> 00:37:30,156
or a bird in flight,
464
00:37:30,267 --> 00:37:33,634
that you also find
on this rock pendant
465
00:37:33,737 --> 00:37:38,197
hanging from the ceiling
large and very small
466
00:37:38,309 --> 00:37:40,971
coupled with two vertical
ocher stripes
467
00:37:41,078 --> 00:37:45,139
that follow
the pendant's contours.
468
00:38:03,033 --> 00:38:04,159
So here we are in front of
469
00:38:04,268 --> 00:38:06,532
the large panel
of red paintings,
470
00:38:06,637 --> 00:38:09,333
also an extremely
intriguing item:
471
00:38:09,440 --> 00:38:11,465
this mound of stones.
472
00:38:11,575 --> 00:38:14,100
You can see that it didn't fall
from the ceiling.
473
00:38:14,211 --> 00:38:17,374
It was prehistoric man
who grouped the stones here,
474
00:38:17,481 --> 00:38:20,006
but we do not know why.
475
00:38:26,891 --> 00:38:29,553
On this panel, you have,
first of all,
476
00:38:29,660 --> 00:38:32,561
a little rhinoceros
with a large horn
477
00:38:32,663 --> 00:38:34,756
and a stripe on the abdomen.
478
00:38:34,865 --> 00:38:38,733
Also, you have
a whole series underneath
479
00:38:38,836 --> 00:38:41,430
of positive handprints.
480
00:38:41,539 --> 00:38:43,871
And over there,
you can see the hand
481
00:38:43,974 --> 00:38:45,965
of the man
who printed his palms
482
00:38:46,076 --> 00:38:47,839
in the first room of the cave,
483
00:38:47,945 --> 00:38:52,382
because you can recognize
his crooked little finger.
484
00:38:52,483 --> 00:38:55,748
In other words,
we've followed him here.
485
00:38:58,188 --> 00:39:00,656
Here there are some animals
486
00:39:00,758 --> 00:39:04,125
and here the front part
of a big rhinoceros
487
00:39:04,228 --> 00:39:08,255
with a very large horn.
488
00:39:10,301 --> 00:39:12,895
Here you have
torch swipe marks.
489
00:39:13,003 --> 00:39:15,563
The men would light their way
with a torch,
490
00:39:15,673 --> 00:39:18,005
and when the wood
was too burnt down,
491
00:39:18,108 --> 00:39:20,838
they would scrape the torch
against the wall
492
00:39:20,945 --> 00:39:22,708
to rekindle the flame.
493
00:39:22,813 --> 00:39:25,509
The traces are fresh,
because you can see
494
00:39:25,616 --> 00:39:29,279
these small fragments of coal
that have fallen.
495
00:39:32,356 --> 00:39:34,381
One of these
tiny fragments
496
00:39:34,491 --> 00:39:37,324
was tested
by radiocarbon dating.
497
00:39:37,428 --> 00:39:43,458
This torch was swiped
28,000 years ago.
498
00:39:47,204 --> 00:39:50,901
- And here we have a painting
that is quite interesting,
499
00:39:51,008 --> 00:39:55,536
because it represents a couple
of now-extinct cave lions.
500
00:39:55,646 --> 00:39:57,273
You have here the male.
501
00:39:57,381 --> 00:39:59,975
He's behind, the larger one.
502
00:40:00,084 --> 00:40:02,314
He's outlined
in a single stroke
503
00:40:02,419 --> 00:40:05,684
more than six feet in length.
504
00:40:05,789 --> 00:40:08,758
And in front,
you have the female.
505
00:40:08,859 --> 00:40:15,059
She is smaller and seems to rub
her flank against the male.
506
00:40:15,165 --> 00:40:18,623
And this representation
of the cave lion
507
00:40:18,736 --> 00:40:21,569
has allowed us to shed light
on a mystery,
508
00:40:21,672 --> 00:40:24,641
because archaeozoologists
didn't know
509
00:40:24,742 --> 00:40:27,210
whether the cave lion
had a mane,
510
00:40:27,311 --> 00:40:29,905
like the lion today
living in Africa.
511
00:40:30,014 --> 00:40:32,812
And this representation
of a cave lion,
512
00:40:32,916 --> 00:40:35,282
more than 30,000 years old,
513
00:40:35,386 --> 00:40:39,220
shows us
that they didn't have a mane.
514
00:40:39,323 --> 00:40:44,056
Look at the outline of his head,
which is clearly delineated.
515
00:40:47,731 --> 00:40:50,222
And this is, without a doubt,
a male,
516
00:40:50,334 --> 00:40:54,828
because we've got the scrotum
right here under the tail.
517
00:41:07,551 --> 00:41:10,585
This is one of the most
beautiful panels in the cave,
518
00:41:10,689 --> 00:41:13,920
along with the lion panel
at the far end.
519
00:41:14,025 --> 00:41:15,754
And here we can see
520
00:41:15,860 --> 00:41:17,953
the technique
of prehistoric man,
521
00:41:18,063 --> 00:41:20,793
but you can also see
their keen knowledge
522
00:41:20,899 --> 00:41:22,526
of the animal world.
523
00:41:22,634 --> 00:41:24,625
They tell us stories.
524
00:41:24,736 --> 00:41:27,000
Here you have
an ensemble of horses,
525
00:41:27,105 --> 00:41:30,404
but their open mouths suggest
that the animals are whinnying.
526
00:41:30,508 --> 00:41:32,271
That is to say
that these images
527
00:41:32,377 --> 00:41:34,174
become audible to us.
528
00:41:34,279 --> 00:41:38,113
You see that the two rhinos
there are fighting.
529
00:41:38,216 --> 00:41:41,617
You can see all the signs
of fury towards each other,
530
00:41:41,720 --> 00:41:45,087
the movement of their legs,
which are thrown forward,
531
00:41:45,190 --> 00:41:49,752
and you can almost hear
the sound
532
00:41:49,861 --> 00:41:52,921
of their horns colliding
against each other
533
00:41:53,031 --> 00:41:55,158
in the movement of the fight.
534
00:41:55,266 --> 00:41:59,669
Here you have another story,
a story of lions,
535
00:41:59,771 --> 00:42:03,172
a male courting a female
who is not ready for mating.
536
00:42:03,274 --> 00:42:05,708
She sits and growls.
537
00:42:05,810 --> 00:42:09,041
Look, you can hear
the female growling.
538
00:42:09,147 --> 00:42:10,910
She's raising her lips.
539
00:42:11,015 --> 00:42:12,505
She's baring her teeth.
540
00:42:12,617 --> 00:42:14,175
She is not happy.
541
00:42:14,285 --> 00:42:16,753
And here, to finish off,
542
00:42:16,855 --> 00:42:19,016
you have the flight
of this bison.
543
00:42:19,124 --> 00:42:20,523
We hear the hooves.
544
00:42:20,625 --> 00:42:24,186
We can make out multiple legs
indicating its movement.
545
00:42:24,295 --> 00:42:26,490
It is escaping
from this alcove,
546
00:42:26,598 --> 00:42:29,226
following this auroch.
547
00:42:33,705 --> 00:42:35,673
Madame Baffier
takes us down
548
00:42:35,774 --> 00:42:38,572
to the farthest chamber
of the cave,
549
00:42:38,676 --> 00:42:42,612
the mysterious chamber
of the lions.
550
00:42:42,714 --> 00:42:47,014
There is a serious level
of toxic CO2 gas
551
00:42:47,118 --> 00:42:49,484
emanating from the roots
of trees,
552
00:42:49,587 --> 00:42:55,219
which seeps down into the cave
through the porous limestone.
553
00:42:55,326 --> 00:42:59,956
Our time is even more
constricted in this location,
554
00:43:00,064 --> 00:43:05,764
and there is no possibility
to get close to the paintings.
555
00:43:05,870 --> 00:43:07,303
- Unfortunately,
556
00:43:07,405 --> 00:43:10,306
there are things you won't
be able to show in your film
557
00:43:10,408 --> 00:43:12,433
and you won't be able to see.
558
00:43:12,544 --> 00:43:14,637
You can't get closer.
559
00:43:14,746 --> 00:43:17,579
That is the case with these
absolutely marvelous paintings
560
00:43:17,682 --> 00:43:21,209
in the farthest chamber,
this grouping of lions.
561
00:43:21,319 --> 00:43:24,618
It is especially the case
with this rock pendant,
562
00:43:24,722 --> 00:43:26,986
where the lower portion
of a woman's body
563
00:43:27,091 --> 00:43:28,752
has been painted.
564
00:43:28,860 --> 00:43:31,624
That is, you have
her pubic triangle
565
00:43:31,729 --> 00:43:35,290
and her legs that separate,
starting at the knee,
566
00:43:35,400 --> 00:43:37,834
which diverge
and are reminiscent
567
00:43:37,936 --> 00:43:41,064
of the well-known small
early Stone Age statuettes
568
00:43:41,172 --> 00:43:45,506
from archaeological digs
in the Swabian Jura in Germany.
569
00:43:45,610 --> 00:43:49,603
We can only see part of this
lower half of a female body,
570
00:43:49,714 --> 00:43:53,411
because we cannot access
the other side of the pendant.
571
00:43:53,518 --> 00:43:55,486
You can not walk
on these grounds,
572
00:43:55,587 --> 00:43:57,578
because they are too fragile.
573
00:43:57,689 --> 00:44:00,590
You would destroy
the charcoal remains.
574
00:44:00,692 --> 00:44:02,455
You would destroy the tracks
575
00:44:02,560 --> 00:44:04,960
left by the bears
and the humans.
576
00:44:05,063 --> 00:44:08,863
So you'll have to make do
with this partial image.
577
00:44:08,967 --> 00:44:11,993
If you completed the other half
of this female body
578
00:44:12,103 --> 00:44:14,264
with its other legs
symmetrically,
579
00:44:14,372 --> 00:44:17,569
you could see that it is
connected to a bison head
580
00:44:17,675 --> 00:44:20,075
that would have
a somewhat human arm.
581
00:44:20,178 --> 00:44:24,205
And here we are,
some 30,000 years later,
582
00:44:24,315 --> 00:44:28,411
with a myth that has endured
until our days.
583
00:44:28,519 --> 00:44:30,578
We can also find
this association
584
00:44:30,688 --> 00:44:32,121
of female and bull
585
00:44:32,223 --> 00:44:38,628
in Picasso's drawings
of the Minotaur and the woman.
586
00:44:38,730 --> 00:44:42,826
This is the only
partial representation
587
00:44:42,934 --> 00:44:45,960
of a human
in the entire cave.
588
00:44:46,070 --> 00:44:47,833
For the time being,
589
00:44:47,939 --> 00:44:50,237
the other side
of the rock pendant
590
00:44:50,341 --> 00:44:55,040
must remain unreachable for us.
591
00:44:55,146 --> 00:45:00,049
The people who created this
are equally enigmatic.
592
00:45:00,151 --> 00:45:02,881
Of the few things
they left behind,
593
00:45:02,987 --> 00:45:05,649
practical items
like flint tools
594
00:45:05,757 --> 00:45:09,056
can be more easily read.
595
00:45:09,160 --> 00:45:10,718
- All the boxes...
596
00:45:10,828 --> 00:45:12,261
The local museum
is filled
597
00:45:12,363 --> 00:45:14,524
with artifacts from the region.
598
00:45:14,632 --> 00:45:17,999
- Because we have made
some excavation in the site.
599
00:45:18,102 --> 00:45:20,593
But Jean-Michel Geneste
- can only lead us
600
00:45:20,705 --> 00:45:23,435
to a handful of findings
from Chauvet Cave.
601
00:45:23,541 --> 00:45:24,701
- Things are preserved.
602
00:45:24,809 --> 00:45:27,937
You have only two, three boxes
in this area,
603
00:45:28,046 --> 00:45:29,980
but I have prepared
for you some...
604
00:45:30,081 --> 00:45:32,845
To shed light
on the enigmatic female image,
605
00:45:32,951 --> 00:45:36,978
he has prepared some similar
figurines from other regions.
606
00:45:37,088 --> 00:45:39,022
- Very precious for archaeology.
607
00:45:39,123 --> 00:45:44,993
You can see,
like in this Willendorf Venus,
608
00:45:45,096 --> 00:45:49,533
it's a copy made in limestone,
found in Austria,
609
00:45:49,634 --> 00:45:51,864
from the same period.
610
00:45:51,970 --> 00:45:53,562
In the Chauvet Cave,
611
00:45:53,671 --> 00:45:57,038
you have only the lower part
of the belly preserved.
612
00:45:57,141 --> 00:45:59,939
It's embedded in a bison.
613
00:46:00,044 --> 00:46:01,739
There seems
to have existed
614
00:46:01,846 --> 00:46:03,108
a visual convention
615
00:46:03,214 --> 00:46:07,241
extending all the way
beyond Baywatch.
616
00:46:09,988 --> 00:46:12,889
- No male representation
very clearly found
617
00:46:12,991 --> 00:46:15,459
but this lion man.
618
00:46:15,560 --> 00:46:17,050
It comes from a site,
619
00:46:17,161 --> 00:46:20,358
Hohlenstein-Stadel
in Swabian Alps.
620
00:46:20,465 --> 00:46:25,596
What is amazing, it's a mixture
621
00:46:25,703 --> 00:46:30,265
between
an anthropomorphic shape,
622
00:46:30,375 --> 00:46:34,402
a human body,
and the head of a lion.
623
00:46:34,512 --> 00:46:38,141
Is it the spirit of the... -
of a lion in a man?
624
00:46:38,249 --> 00:46:40,183
Is it a marriage?
625
00:46:40,284 --> 00:46:42,047
Is it a new being?
626
00:46:42,153 --> 00:46:46,749
That's a question we can ask
to this reproduction.
627
00:46:51,396 --> 00:46:53,261
What the people
who lived in this valley
628
00:46:53,364 --> 00:46:56,424
left behind
is their great art.
629
00:46:56,534 --> 00:46:58,229
It was not
a primitive beginning
630
00:46:58,336 --> 00:47:00,236
or a slow evolution,;
631
00:47:00,338 --> 00:47:05,435
it rather burst onto the scene
like a sudden explosive event.
632
00:47:05,543 --> 00:47:11,914
It is as if the modern
human soul had awakened here.
633
00:47:12,016 --> 00:47:15,417
Even more astonishing to
consider is that at the time,
634
00:47:15,520 --> 00:47:20,583
Neanderthal man still roamed
this valley.
635
00:47:20,691 --> 00:47:24,957
But there must have been other
forms of artistic expression,
636
00:47:25,063 --> 00:47:27,861
like music, for example.
637
00:47:27,965 --> 00:47:32,834
For this, we had to look around
in nearby regions.
638
00:47:32,937 --> 00:47:37,237
Southwestern Germany
30,000, 40,000 years ago
639
00:47:37,341 --> 00:47:42,938
was connected to this valley
through an ice-free corridor.
640
00:47:43,047 --> 00:47:46,346
It should also be noted that
the Alp Mountains were covered
641
00:47:46,451 --> 00:47:50,182
by 9,000 feet of ice,
binding so much water
642
00:47:50,288 --> 00:47:56,488
that the sea level
was 300 feet lower than today.
643
00:47:56,594 --> 00:47:59,563
A hunter could have walked
from Paris to London
644
00:47:59,664 --> 00:48:04,863
crossing the dry seabed
of the English Channel.
645
00:48:04,969 --> 00:48:07,437
Walking 400 miles
in this direction
646
00:48:07,538 --> 00:48:11,440
would lead you
to the Swabian Alb of Germany.
647
00:48:14,846 --> 00:48:17,212
There, in the museum
of Blaubeuren,
648
00:48:17,315 --> 00:48:22,514
we find replicas of the
best-known Paleolithic Venuses.
649
00:48:35,399 --> 00:48:39,836
But this one, the Venus
of Hohle Fels, stands out.
650
00:48:39,937 --> 00:48:46,172
Found in 2008,
it is sensational for its age.
651
00:48:49,280 --> 00:48:52,681
- The Venus from Hohle Fels
is probably the oldest depiction
652
00:48:52,783 --> 00:48:55,775
of any kind of figurative object
we know at all.
653
00:48:55,887 --> 00:48:58,856
It's the earliest representation
of a human being,
654
00:48:58,956 --> 00:49:02,915
and it's the absolute root
of figurative depiction
655
00:49:03,027 --> 00:49:04,426
as we know it.
656
00:49:04,529 --> 00:49:07,430
Later on, we see a range
of animals being depicted.
657
00:49:07,532 --> 00:49:10,126
We can think of the animal
depictions in ivory here
658
00:49:10,234 --> 00:49:13,795
or the fabulous depictions
from Grotte Chauvet
659
00:49:13,905 --> 00:49:15,270
of mammoths, of lions,
660
00:49:15,373 --> 00:49:17,307
and we can see
a very clear connection
661
00:49:17,408 --> 00:49:21,401
between the Swabian finds
and the depictions in Chauvet.
662
00:49:21,512 --> 00:49:23,980
What's also fascinating
is that at this time,
663
00:49:24,081 --> 00:49:25,309
40,000 years ago,
664
00:49:25,416 --> 00:49:27,441
we see evidence
for musical instruments,
665
00:49:27,552 --> 00:49:29,042
a range of personal ornaments,
666
00:49:29,153 --> 00:49:31,314
mythical depictions
that clearly show
667
00:49:31,422 --> 00:49:33,913
that these people had
a religious concept
668
00:49:34,025 --> 00:49:38,121
evolving the transformation
between humans and animals.
669
00:49:38,229 --> 00:49:40,254
This here
is the original statuette
670
00:49:40,364 --> 00:49:43,197
carved from a mammoth tusk.
671
00:49:43,301 --> 00:49:46,600
- If we look at the Venus of
Hohle Fels a bit more closely,
672
00:49:46,704 --> 00:49:48,831
we can see very clearly,
for instance,
673
00:49:48,940 --> 00:49:51,374
that the figurine has no head,
right?
674
00:49:51,475 --> 00:49:53,807
Instead of a head,
the figurine has a ring.
675
00:49:53,911 --> 00:49:55,811
It was perhaps worn at times,
676
00:49:55,913 --> 00:49:58,711
suspended on a string
of some sort.
677
00:49:58,816 --> 00:50:01,216
Also, the sexual attributes
are key,
678
00:50:01,319 --> 00:50:03,685
which clearly link
this depiction
679
00:50:03,788 --> 00:50:07,155
to ideas of reproduction,
fecundity, sexuality,
680
00:50:07,258 --> 00:50:10,022
ideas that are
absolutely essential
681
00:50:10,127 --> 00:50:14,188
to all of humanity also today.
682
00:50:14,298 --> 00:50:16,266
It's also important to realize
that at this time,
683
00:50:16,367 --> 00:50:18,801
much of Europe was occupied
by Neanderthals.
684
00:50:18,903 --> 00:50:20,393
So we're dealing
with the critical phase
685
00:50:20,504 --> 00:50:21,869
in human evolution
686
00:50:21,973 --> 00:50:25,875
where two forms of human beings
are testing their boundaries.
687
00:50:25,977 --> 00:50:28,343
And what we find
over and over again
688
00:50:28,446 --> 00:50:29,435
is that Neanderthals,
689
00:50:29,547 --> 00:50:31,071
although they're
very sophisticated,
690
00:50:31,182 --> 00:50:37,314
they never had this kind
of symbolic artifact ever.
691
00:50:37,421 --> 00:50:39,548
This small ivory mammoth
692
00:50:39,657 --> 00:50:45,152
was also found
near Hohle Fels cave.
693
00:50:45,263 --> 00:50:50,792
And this beautiful horse
comes from the same region.
694
00:50:50,901 --> 00:50:53,836
They also found fragments
of flutes.
695
00:50:53,938 --> 00:50:57,669
We asked Dr. Conard
to show us an original.
696
00:50:57,775 --> 00:51:00,642
- The ivory flute is really
a remarkable artifact
697
00:51:00,745 --> 00:51:03,680
that Maria Malina discovered
a few years back,
698
00:51:03,781 --> 00:51:06,511
and I think
what's extremely important
699
00:51:06,617 --> 00:51:08,585
is that we realize
that archeology today
700
00:51:08,686 --> 00:51:11,985
is not a heroic adventure
with spades and picks
701
00:51:12,089 --> 00:51:14,455
but high-tech scientific work
702
00:51:14,558 --> 00:51:16,788
that's done
with incredible detail.
703
00:51:16,894 --> 00:51:19,795
Really millimeter by millimeter,
the sediments are removed
704
00:51:19,897 --> 00:51:22,730
in these deposits
the age of Grotte Chauvet
705
00:51:22,833 --> 00:51:23,993
and our sites,
706
00:51:24,101 --> 00:51:25,898
between 30,000
and 40,000 years ago.
707
00:51:26,003 --> 00:51:28,233
And this detailed work
allowed Maria
708
00:51:28,339 --> 00:51:30,705
to identify a whole range
of finds
709
00:51:30,808 --> 00:51:32,435
that she was able
to piece together.
710
00:51:32,543 --> 00:51:34,704
Maybe you can explain
how that worked out.
711
00:51:34,812 --> 00:51:36,746
- Yes, we were doing
an inventory
712
00:51:36,847 --> 00:51:38,439
of all the artifact pieces.
713
00:51:38,549 --> 00:51:41,712
Some of the pieces came
from the 1970s,
714
00:51:41,819 --> 00:51:43,650
from the first years
of excavation,
715
00:51:43,754 --> 00:51:46,450
and these were
really small pieces.
716
00:51:46,557 --> 00:51:48,787
You can see here
in this picture.
717
00:51:48,893 --> 00:51:50,520
The tiny ivory pieces
718
00:51:50,628 --> 00:51:54,064
remained unexplained
for a full three decades.
719
00:51:54,165 --> 00:51:59,967
- And 31 pieces had
a very significant look.
720
00:52:00,071 --> 00:52:04,030
We found pieces with a part
of the finger holes
721
00:52:04,141 --> 00:52:05,972
and with notches on the side,
722
00:52:06,077 --> 00:52:08,944
and with these pieces,
I thought already
723
00:52:09,046 --> 00:52:11,674
that it could be
a part of an ivory flute.
724
00:52:11,782 --> 00:52:14,012
Of course, the question
was very important
725
00:52:14,118 --> 00:52:15,949
how this flute was made.
726
00:52:16,053 --> 00:52:18,851
And you can see here
on the long axis
727
00:52:18,956 --> 00:52:22,858
there is a split
going all over the flute,
728
00:52:22,960 --> 00:52:27,454
and inside the two halves,
they hollowed the flute out.
729
00:52:27,565 --> 00:52:31,899
And these little notches
along this axis, along the split
730
00:52:32,002 --> 00:52:37,838
helped to refit these two halves
together very precise.
731
00:52:37,942 --> 00:52:40,536
This flute is only one
of eight in all
732
00:52:40,644 --> 00:52:45,138
so far recovered from this area
of southwestern Germany.
733
00:52:45,249 --> 00:52:47,376
The caves here
have no paintings
734
00:52:47,485 --> 00:52:50,750
but yield many other objects
of art.
735
00:52:50,855 --> 00:52:53,085
- In this cave,
the Geissenkloesterle cave,
736
00:52:53,190 --> 00:52:57,559
many very important findings
from the Ice Age were made.
737
00:52:57,661 --> 00:53:02,064
We found some little ivory
statues of bear and mammoth... -
738
00:53:02,166 --> 00:53:04,396
a very tiny mammoth,
very lovely.
739
00:53:04,502 --> 00:53:08,802
And in 1992, I was part
of the excavation team.
740
00:53:08,906 --> 00:53:13,934
People lived here about 30,000,
40,000 years back in time,
741
00:53:14,044 --> 00:53:16,342
and in that time,
it was very cold here,
742
00:53:16,447 --> 00:53:19,007
because the Alp Mountains
were covered by a glacier
743
00:53:19,116 --> 00:53:21,812
about 2,500 meters thick.
744
00:53:21,919 --> 00:53:23,750
And in the valley down there,
745
00:53:23,854 --> 00:53:26,721
reindeer and mammoth
were passing,
746
00:53:26,824 --> 00:53:28,553
and it was very cold.
747
00:53:28,659 --> 00:53:33,460
And that's the reason why
I'm dressed up like an Inuit.
748
00:53:33,564 --> 00:53:36,692
We presume that in this way,
749
00:53:36,801 --> 00:53:39,167
the people of the Ice Age
were clothed
750
00:53:39,270 --> 00:53:43,206
by reindeer fur
and boots made of reindeer fur
751
00:53:43,307 --> 00:53:44,740
and reindeer leather,
752
00:53:44,842 --> 00:53:50,337
because otherwise
you couldn't stand the cold.
753
00:53:50,448 --> 00:53:57,149
One of the most important finds
we made in this cave
754
00:53:57,254 --> 00:54:02,282
was a very tiny flute made
out of the radius of a vulture.
755
00:54:02,393 --> 00:54:06,693
Astonishing on this flute
is that is... -
756
00:54:06,797 --> 00:54:08,890
that it is pentatonic,
757
00:54:08,999 --> 00:54:14,835
and this is the same tonality
we are used to hear today.
758
00:54:14,939 --> 00:54:20,969
And if you like, I'll try to
play some small tunes for you.
759
00:54:36,026 --> 00:54:39,086
And when I first reconstructed
the instrument
760
00:54:39,196 --> 00:54:42,427
and tried to play some tunes,
I came across these ones.
761
00:55:00,451 --> 00:55:04,649
Sounds a little bit
like Star-Spangled Banner.
762
00:55:09,827 --> 00:55:13,888
Back in France,
near Chauvet Cave,
763
00:55:13,998 --> 00:55:17,092
explorers
using more primal techniques
764
00:55:17,201 --> 00:55:20,102
in search of still-hidden
underground chambers
765
00:55:20,204 --> 00:55:23,696
roam the landscape.
766
00:55:54,805 --> 00:55:56,705
Professional cave explorers
767
00:55:56,807 --> 00:56:00,106
have techniques for finding
underground chambers,
768
00:56:00,210 --> 00:56:01,871
because there are air currents.
769
00:56:01,979 --> 00:56:05,176
So they use the back
of their hands or their cheeks
770
00:56:05,282 --> 00:56:07,307
to feel for a faint draft of air
771
00:56:07,418 --> 00:56:12,117
that may be coming
out of the cave.
772
00:56:12,222 --> 00:56:14,486
I'm trying to do things
differently,
773
00:56:14,592 --> 00:56:20,656
as I have the habit of using my
sense of smell in my profession.
774
00:56:20,764 --> 00:56:22,425
So I try to sniff the smells
775
00:56:22,533 --> 00:56:28,267
coming from the interior
of a cave.
776
00:56:28,372 --> 00:56:33,571
Here, I didn't smell anything
except the exterior landscape.
777
00:56:33,677 --> 00:56:39,582
Outside you can smell the earth,
the wild thyme, the ivy.
778
00:56:39,683 --> 00:56:41,116
You can smell a range of things
779
00:56:41,218 --> 00:56:43,618
but nothing specific
related to a cavern
780
00:56:43,721 --> 00:56:46,952
that's been closed
for thousands of years.
781
00:56:51,829 --> 00:56:55,993
This is my personal technique,
because I design perfumes.
782
00:56:56,100 --> 00:56:57,692
It's a matter of trying
to experience it
783
00:56:57,801 --> 00:56:59,428
in a different manner.
784
00:56:59,536 --> 00:57:02,994
So I've been... - I've always
created perfumes,
785
00:57:03,107 --> 00:57:05,405
and most notably,
I was president
786
00:57:05,509 --> 00:57:07,670
of the French Society
of Perfumers
787
00:57:07,778 --> 00:57:11,407
for some years and...
788
00:57:33,637 --> 00:57:35,264
There are plans
789
00:57:35,372 --> 00:57:37,966
to build a theme park
for tourists
790
00:57:38,075 --> 00:57:40,339
with a precise replica
of the cave
791
00:57:40,444 --> 00:57:45,074
a few miles from here.
792
00:57:45,182 --> 00:57:48,276
This replica may even contain
a re-creation
793
00:57:48,385 --> 00:57:52,549
of the odor
of the prehistoric interior.
794
00:58:14,545 --> 00:58:17,070
- Evidently, the odor
you can smell right now
795
00:58:17,181 --> 00:58:19,581
is quite attenuated.
796
00:58:19,683 --> 00:58:22,311
It is very subtle.
797
00:58:22,419 --> 00:58:26,788
There are not many emanations,
but our imagination permits us
798
00:58:26,890 --> 00:58:30,656
to try and reconstruct
the scene,
799
00:58:30,761 --> 00:58:34,458
the scene with its odors
from 25,000 years ago,
800
00:58:34,565 --> 00:58:37,398
with all the animals that
would have been found there... -
801
00:58:37,501 --> 00:58:42,837
bears, wolves, perhaps even
rhinoceroses, and man... -
802
00:58:42,940 --> 00:58:47,775
the presence of their lives,
meaning burnt wood, resins,
803
00:58:47,878 --> 00:58:51,177
the odors of everything
from the natural world
804
00:58:51,281 --> 00:58:53,715
that surrounds this cave.
805
00:58:53,817 --> 00:58:57,480
We can go back
with our imagination.
806
00:59:04,495 --> 00:59:06,429
Herzog:
With his sense of wonder,
807
00:59:06,530 --> 00:59:08,157
the cave transforms
808
00:59:08,265 --> 00:59:11,826
into an enchanted world
of the imaginary
809
00:59:11,935 --> 00:59:17,373
where time and space
lose their meaning.
810
00:59:17,474 --> 00:59:22,104
These crystal formations take
thousands of years to grow.
811
00:59:22,212 --> 00:59:25,409
The artists of the cave
never even saw them,
812
00:59:25,516 --> 00:59:28,110
as many of them
only started to form
813
00:59:28,218 --> 00:59:32,120
after the landslide
sealed the entrance.
814
00:59:52,142 --> 00:59:54,906
In a forbidden recess
of the cave,
815
00:59:55,012 --> 00:59:57,810
there's a footprint
of an eight-year-old boy
816
00:59:57,915 --> 01:00:02,443
next to the footprint
of a wolf.
817
01:00:02,553 --> 01:00:05,954
Did a hungry wolf
stalk the boy?
818
01:00:06,056 --> 01:00:09,719
Or did they walk together
as friends?
819
01:00:09,827 --> 01:00:13,820
Or were their tracks made
thousands of years apart?
820
01:00:13,931 --> 01:00:17,367
We'll never know.
821
01:01:53,064 --> 01:01:55,362
Dwarfed
by these large chambers
822
01:01:55,467 --> 01:01:58,595
illuminated
by our wandering lights,
823
01:01:58,703 --> 01:02:03,333
sometimes we were overcome by
a strange, irrational sensation
824
01:02:03,441 --> 01:02:06,501
as if we were disturbing
the Paleolithic people
825
01:02:06,611 --> 01:02:09,546
in their work.
826
01:02:09,647 --> 01:02:14,243
It felt like eyes upon us.
827
01:02:14,352 --> 01:02:17,913
This sensation occurred
to some of the scientists
828
01:02:18,022 --> 01:02:23,016
and also the discoverers
of the cave.
829
01:02:23,128 --> 01:02:26,894
It was a relief to surface
again aboveground.
830
01:02:28,900 --> 01:02:31,892
Back outside,
we ask Jean-Michel Geneste
831
01:02:32,003 --> 01:02:35,200
about hunting techniques
of Paleolithic people
832
01:02:35,306 --> 01:02:39,538
millennia before the invention
of bow and arrow.
833
01:02:39,644 --> 01:02:43,671
- The Ohauvet Oave
Aurignacian people
834
01:02:43,782 --> 01:02:46,945
hunted a lot
of really big games.
835
01:02:47,051 --> 01:02:51,579
They hunted everywhere
in France and Europe.
836
01:02:51,689 --> 01:02:54,556
In the settlement,
we found a lot of bones
837
01:02:54,659 --> 01:02:59,494
of reindeer, bison, horses,
and sometime mammoths.
838
01:02:59,597 --> 01:03:03,966
So they developed very specific
hunting technology.
839
01:03:04,068 --> 01:03:08,334
For example, the system
of the Aurignacian bone point
840
01:03:08,439 --> 01:03:09,736
is very ingenious.
841
01:03:09,841 --> 01:03:13,538
It's a bone point
on a wooden shaft.
842
01:03:13,645 --> 01:03:16,273
The piece of the bone point
843
01:03:16,381 --> 01:03:20,249
is very strongly associated
to the shaft.
844
01:03:20,351 --> 01:03:25,084
It's a system using a fork
and a piece inside.
845
01:03:25,190 --> 01:03:27,920
So it's very strong.
846
01:03:28,026 --> 01:03:29,857
It has been made and developed
847
01:03:29,961 --> 01:03:33,226
to kill bison or horses
like that.
848
01:03:33,331 --> 01:03:35,196
It's very aggressive,
849
01:03:35,300 --> 01:03:38,064
and it's also very strong
and powerful.
850
01:03:38,169 --> 01:03:42,538
This kind of weapon and spear
were thrown
851
01:03:42,640 --> 01:03:47,339
not only by hand, like that,
because it's not very efficient,
852
01:03:47,445 --> 01:03:50,312
but l... - we suspect that very... -
853
01:03:50,415 --> 01:03:53,407
in the beginning
of the Paleolithic,
854
01:03:53,518 --> 01:03:57,181
they developed the technology
of the spear thrower.
855
01:03:57,288 --> 01:04:01,281
A spear thrower, it's at
the beginning only a hook,
856
01:04:01,392 --> 01:04:04,361
sometime a tooth,
a piece of antler,
857
01:04:04,462 --> 01:04:07,158
like this one,
on a long handle.
858
01:04:07,265 --> 01:04:13,329
It's elongated arm gave
a lot of power, like that,
859
01:04:13,438 --> 01:04:16,737
and also at the same time,
some precision to keep... -
860
01:04:16,841 --> 01:04:19,309
I just... - to give the spear
a good direction.
861
01:04:19,410 --> 01:04:21,503
So I will show you.
862
01:04:21,613 --> 01:04:24,707
Yes.
863
01:04:24,816 --> 01:04:28,274
You see, the spear
with a flint point,
864
01:04:28,386 --> 01:04:31,844
but to use this,
it's necessary to have
865
01:04:31,956 --> 01:04:36,586
a small depression
at the back of the spear.
866
01:04:36,694 --> 01:04:42,030
We suspect that sometimes
they used feathers to a very... -
867
01:04:42,133 --> 01:04:44,966
to keep the direction
at the moment of the throw.
868
01:04:45,069 --> 01:04:50,132
I will try to show you
how to kill a horse.
869
01:04:52,744 --> 01:04:55,042
Okay.
870
01:04:55,146 --> 01:04:59,276
His efforts
may not look very convincing,
871
01:04:59,384 --> 01:05:01,852
but this is a powerful weapon.
872
01:05:01,953 --> 01:05:05,411
Spearheads have been found
deeply embedded
873
01:05:05,523 --> 01:05:09,687
in the shoulder blades
of horses and mammoths.
874
01:05:15,700 --> 01:05:17,099
- You see the fly?
875
01:05:17,201 --> 01:05:21,194
It's very straight,
and it's 30 meters.
876
01:05:21,306 --> 01:05:23,001
But stay here.
877
01:05:23,107 --> 01:05:27,271
The Paleolithic man
was better than you, I guess.
878
01:05:27,378 --> 01:05:28,811
- Oh, I suspect.
879
01:05:28,913 --> 01:05:31,279
It could be
really difficult for me
880
01:05:31,382 --> 01:05:36,410
with such a shot
to kill a horse, really.
881
01:05:38,690 --> 01:05:39,987
By mid-April,
882
01:05:40,091 --> 01:05:43,583
scientific research has ended
for the year.
883
01:05:43,695 --> 01:05:48,257
Now we are allowed full access
to the cave,
884
01:05:48,366 --> 01:05:50,459
but even that is restricted
885
01:05:50,568 --> 01:05:54,834
to a single week,
four hours a day.
886
01:05:54,939 --> 01:05:58,033
The famous cave of Lascaux
had to be shut down
887
01:05:58,142 --> 01:06:01,043
because the breath
of scores of tourists
888
01:06:01,145 --> 01:06:05,741
has caused mold to grow
on the walls.
889
01:06:11,723 --> 01:06:13,315
We enter Chauvet Cave
890
01:06:13,424 --> 01:06:17,554
aware that this may be
the only and last opportunity
891
01:06:17,662 --> 01:06:20,631
to film inside.
892
01:07:24,996 --> 01:07:29,160
The mystery of the Minotaur
and the female began to unfold
893
01:07:29,267 --> 01:07:32,259
when our guides allowed us
to mount a small camera
894
01:07:32,370 --> 01:07:38,138
on a stick
with which we reached out.
895
01:07:38,242 --> 01:07:43,339
The bison seems to embrace
the sex of a naked woman.
896
01:07:49,754 --> 01:07:52,188
- Traditional people
and, I think,
897
01:07:52,290 --> 01:07:56,124
people of the Paleolithic
had very probably some... -
898
01:07:56,227 --> 01:08:00,857
two concepts which change
our vision of the world.
899
01:08:00,965 --> 01:08:05,425
They're the concept of fluidity
and the concept of permeability.
900
01:08:05,536 --> 01:08:09,563
Fluidity means that
the categories that we have... -
901
01:08:09,674 --> 01:08:14,134
man, woman, horse, I don't know,
tree, et cetera... -
902
01:08:14,245 --> 01:08:16,008
can shift.
903
01:08:16,114 --> 01:08:18,082
A tree may speak.
904
01:08:18,182 --> 01:08:21,015
A man can get transformed
into an animal
905
01:08:21,119 --> 01:08:25,681
and the other way around,
given certain circumstances.
906
01:08:25,790 --> 01:08:32,127
The concept of permeability
is that there are no barriers,
907
01:08:32,230 --> 01:08:34,664
so to speak,
between the world where we are
908
01:08:34,765 --> 01:08:36,995
and the world of the spirits.
909
01:08:37,101 --> 01:08:40,195
A wall can talk to us,
910
01:08:40,304 --> 01:08:44,968
or a wall can accept us
or refuse us.
911
01:08:45,076 --> 01:08:48,239
A shaman, for example,
can send his or her spirit
912
01:08:48,346 --> 01:08:50,871
to the world
of the supernatural
913
01:08:50,982 --> 01:08:55,214
or can receive the visit,
inside him or her,
914
01:08:55,319 --> 01:08:57,651
of supernatural spirits.
915
01:08:57,755 --> 01:09:00,451
If you put those two concepts
together,
916
01:09:00,558 --> 01:09:04,654
you realize how different
life must have been
917
01:09:04,762 --> 01:09:08,755
for those people
from the way we live now.
918
01:09:11,536 --> 01:09:14,198
Humans have been described
in many ways, right?
919
01:09:14,305 --> 01:09:17,672
And for a while,
it was Homo sapiens
920
01:09:17,775 --> 01:09:19,868
and is still called
Homo sapiens,
921
01:09:19,977 --> 01:09:21,808
"the man who knows."
922
01:09:21,913 --> 01:09:25,542
I don't think
it's a good definition at all.
923
01:09:25,650 --> 01:09:27,015
We don't know.
924
01:09:27,118 --> 01:09:28,415
We don't know much.
925
01:09:28,519 --> 01:09:32,751
I would think Homo spiritualis.
926
01:09:35,860 --> 01:09:38,522
The strongest hint
of something spiritual,
927
01:09:38,629 --> 01:09:41,291
some religious ceremony
in the cave,
928
01:09:41,399 --> 01:09:43,458
is this bear skull.
929
01:09:43,568 --> 01:09:49,803
It has been placed dead center
on a rock resembling an altar.
930
01:09:49,907 --> 01:09:53,707
The staging seems deliberate.
931
01:09:53,811 --> 01:09:57,178
The skull faces the entrance
of the cave,
932
01:09:57,281 --> 01:10:00,717
and around it, fragments
of charcoal were found
933
01:10:00,818 --> 01:10:04,777
potentially used as incense.
934
01:10:08,993 --> 01:10:10,961
What exactly took place here,
935
01:10:11,062 --> 01:10:14,395
only the paintings
could tell us.
936
01:13:05,870 --> 01:13:09,328
- If you want to have
an understanding of it,
937
01:13:09,440 --> 01:13:12,238
you must go outside of the cave.
938
01:13:12,343 --> 01:13:17,337
I mean, you must start from
the cave and then go outside.
939
01:13:17,448 --> 01:13:18,574
How far outside?
940
01:13:18,682 --> 01:13:19,979
Where would you go?
941
01:13:20,084 --> 01:13:23,884
- Well, I would say everywhere
but with... -
942
01:13:23,988 --> 01:13:26,183
to have a look
at different culture
943
01:13:26,290 --> 01:13:29,259
would be a very good way
to better understand
944
01:13:29,360 --> 01:13:33,387
how different culture
could have coped with rock art,
945
01:13:33,497 --> 01:13:36,694
for example, in Australia,
in North America,
946
01:13:36,801 --> 01:13:38,325
or in South Africa.
947
01:13:38,436 --> 01:13:40,563
Aborigines in Australia
948
01:13:40,671 --> 01:13:45,836
who lived until recently
almost like Stone Age people.
949
01:13:45,943 --> 01:13:50,346
- Sure, for example,
because they used to paint
950
01:13:50,448 --> 01:13:54,509
and to create rock art
until the 1970s,
951
01:13:54,618 --> 01:13:56,984
and in some places,
I think there still are
952
01:13:57,087 --> 01:14:00,113
some traditions
of creating rock art.
953
01:14:00,224 --> 01:14:01,782
Well, of course it has changed
954
01:14:01,892 --> 01:14:04,190
since the beginning
of the century,
955
01:14:04,295 --> 01:14:06,126
when they were discovered,
956
01:14:06,230 --> 01:14:09,996
but it can tell us
different ways
957
01:14:10,100 --> 01:14:11,533
of looking at rock art
958
01:14:11,635 --> 01:14:14,160
which are not our way
of looking at rock art.
959
01:14:14,271 --> 01:14:15,761
Do you have an example?
960
01:14:15,873 --> 01:14:17,397
- Yeah, sure, of course.
961
01:14:17,508 --> 01:14:23,310
In north Australia, for example,
in the 1970s,
962
01:14:23,414 --> 01:14:27,009
an ethnographer was on the field
with an aborigine
963
01:14:27,117 --> 01:14:29,051
who was his informer,
964
01:14:29,153 --> 01:14:32,611
and once they arrived
in a rock shelter.
965
01:14:32,723 --> 01:14:33,985
And in that rock shelter,
966
01:14:34,091 --> 01:14:36,651
there were some
beautiful paintings,
967
01:14:36,760 --> 01:14:38,193
but they were decaying.
968
01:14:38,295 --> 01:14:41,890
And the aborigine
started to become sad
969
01:14:41,999 --> 01:14:44,263
because he saw
the paintings decaying.
970
01:14:44,368 --> 01:14:46,632
And in that region,
there is a tradition
971
01:14:46,737 --> 01:14:50,833
of touching up the paintings
time after time,
972
01:14:50,941 --> 01:14:57,744
so he sat, and he started
to touch up the paintings.
973
01:14:57,848 --> 01:15:01,875
So the ethnographer
asked the question
974
01:15:01,986 --> 01:15:06,082
that every Western person
would have asked.
975
01:15:06,190 --> 01:15:08,090
"Why are you painting?"
976
01:15:08,192 --> 01:15:10,126
And the man answered,
977
01:15:10,227 --> 01:15:14,186
and his answer
is very troubling,
978
01:15:14,298 --> 01:15:16,425
because he answered,
"I am not.
979
01:15:16,534 --> 01:15:18,593
"I am not painting.
980
01:15:18,702 --> 01:15:22,138
"That's the hand, only hand,
981
01:15:22,239 --> 01:15:25,538
spirit who is actually
painting now."
982
01:15:25,643 --> 01:15:27,372
The hand of a spirit.
983
01:15:27,478 --> 01:15:32,643
- Yeah, because the man
is a part of the spirit.
984
01:22:49,821 --> 01:22:53,382
Do you think that
the paintings in Chauvet Cave
985
01:22:53,491 --> 01:22:57,894
were somehow the beginning
of the modern human soul?
986
01:22:57,996 --> 01:23:00,157
What constitutes humanness?
987
01:23:00,265 --> 01:23:06,170
- Humanness
is a very good adaptation
988
01:23:06,271 --> 01:23:08,739
with the... - in the world.
989
01:23:08,840 --> 01:23:11,934
So the soc... -
the human society
990
01:23:12,043 --> 01:23:15,410
needs to adaptate
to the landscape,
991
01:23:15,513 --> 01:23:18,949
to the other beings,
the animals,
992
01:23:19,050 --> 01:23:22,383
to other human groups
993
01:23:22,487 --> 01:23:26,548
and to communicate something,
to communicate it
994
01:23:26,658 --> 01:23:29,218
and to inscribe the memory
995
01:23:29,327 --> 01:23:33,661
on very specific
and hard things,
996
01:23:33,765 --> 01:23:38,600
like walls, like pieces of wood,
like bones,
997
01:23:38,703 --> 01:23:42,264
this is invention
of Cro-Magnon.
998
01:23:42,373 --> 01:23:43,772
And how about music?
999
01:23:43,875 --> 01:23:48,073
- And... - yes, and also things,
mythology, music.
1000
01:23:48,179 --> 01:23:52,639
But with the invention
of the figuration... -
1001
01:23:52,750 --> 01:23:55,651
figuration of animals, of men,
of things... -
1002
01:23:55,753 --> 01:23:59,120
it's a way of communication
between humans
1003
01:23:59,223 --> 01:24:01,088
and with the future
1004
01:24:01,192 --> 01:24:05,526
to evocate the past,
to transmit information
1005
01:24:05,630 --> 01:24:08,997
that is very better
than language,
1006
01:24:09,100 --> 01:24:12,228
than oral communication.
1007
01:24:12,337 --> 01:24:18,071
And this invention is still
the same in our world today... -
1008
01:24:18,176 --> 01:24:21,111
with this camera, for example.
1009
01:24:45,403 --> 01:24:47,166
On the Rhone River
1010
01:24:47,271 --> 01:24:51,605
is one of the largest nuclear
power plants in France.
1011
01:24:51,709 --> 01:24:56,510
The Chauvet Cave is located
only 20 miles as the crow flies
1012
01:24:56,614 --> 01:24:59,913
beyond these hills
in the background.
1013
01:25:00,018 --> 01:25:02,509
A surplus of warm water,
1014
01:25:02,620 --> 01:25:05,521
which has been used
to cool these reactors,
1015
01:25:05,623 --> 01:25:11,653
is diverted half a mile away
to create a tropical biosphere.
1016
01:25:11,763 --> 01:25:15,597
Warm steam
fills enormous greenhouses,
1017
01:25:15,700 --> 01:25:18,362
and the site is expanding.
1018
01:25:38,289 --> 01:25:43,124
Crocodiles have been introduced
into this brooding jungle,
1019
01:25:43,227 --> 01:25:46,321
and warmed by water
to cool the reactor,
1020
01:25:46,431 --> 01:25:50,026
man, do they thrive.
1021
01:25:50,134 --> 01:25:54,002
There are already
hundreds of them.
1022
01:26:02,413 --> 01:26:04,176
Not surprisingly,
1023
01:26:04,282 --> 01:26:09,879
mutant albinos swim and breed
in these waters.
1024
01:26:09,987 --> 01:26:14,287
A thought is born
of this surreal environment.
1025
01:26:14,392 --> 01:26:18,488
Not long ago, just a few
ten thousands of years back,
1026
01:26:18,596 --> 01:26:23,226
there were glaciers here
9,000 feet thick.
1027
01:26:23,334 --> 01:26:27,270
And now a new climate
is steaming and spreading.
1028
01:26:29,907 --> 01:26:35,243
Fairly soon, these albinos
might reach Chauvet Cave.
1029
01:26:35,346 --> 01:26:41,080
Looking at the paintings,
what will they make of them?
1030
01:26:53,732 --> 01:26:55,324
Nothing is real.
1031
01:26:55,434 --> 01:26:57,959
Nothing is certain.
1032
01:26:58,070 --> 01:27:01,130
It is hard to decide
whether or not
1033
01:27:01,240 --> 01:27:03,208
these creatures here
are dividing
1034
01:27:03,308 --> 01:27:06,937
into their own doppelgaengers.
1035
01:27:09,814 --> 01:27:13,113
And do they really meet,
1036
01:27:13,217 --> 01:27:18,120
or is it just their own
imaginary mirror reflection?
1037
01:27:22,261 --> 01:27:25,458
Are we today
possibly the crocodiles
1038
01:27:25,564 --> 01:27:28,294
who look back into an abyss
of time
1039
01:27:28,400 --> 01:27:32,496
when we see the paintings
of Chauvet Cave?
1040
01:27:33,000 --> 01:27:36,064
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