In September of 1940 four French boys discovered a long-forgotten cave full of prehistoric art. The Lascaux Cave, as itâÂÂs now known, has been dubbed the âÂÂSistine Chapel of Pre-history,â because itâÂÂs adorned with ancient frescos of bulls, deer and bison. The caves have been closed to the public since the 1960s to protect them, but to make them accessible to an international public several exact replicas of some of the paintings were made — a set of which is on display through March 23 at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Houston Public MediaâÂÂs Ernie Manouse took a tour of the exhibit with the museumâÂÂs Amanda Norris who says the pieces are replicas of some of the oldest artwork known to exist â about 20,000 yearsà old.
More: You can see ErnieâÂÂs entire piece on the Lascaux Caves on Arts InSight, Thursday night at 7 on Houston PBS.
Virtual Tour of the Lascaux Caves:
Ã
Subscribe to Today in Houston
Fill out the form below to subscribe our new daily editorial newsletter from the HPM Newsroom.