UV Scans Uncover Natural Varnish that May Have Preserved Ancient Chauvet Cave Drawings
6 Articles
6 Articles
A French team used ultraviolet spectroscopy to uncontact the 37,000-year-old works and reveal how geology acted as a natural shield.
Fluorescent Glow Reveals Hidden Glaze on Chauvet Cave’s Ancient Art
Some of the oldest drawings known to humanity, made roughly 37,000 years ago in France’s Chauvet Cave, are covered by a thin, translucent film of calcite that cannot be seen with the naked eye. The post Fluorescent Glow Reveals Hidden Glaze on Chauvet Cave’s Ancient Art appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.
UV scans uncover natural varnish that may have preserved ancient Chauvet Cave drawings
Tucked away inside a limestone cave in southeastern France lies some of the oldest artwork in existence. Known as Chauvet Cave, the site is so historically important—and fragile—that its location is kept secret and the cave is locked behind a huge steel door. And now, researchers have devised a technique to safely investigate these artworks and understand the natural varnish that has protected them for centuries. Their findings are published in …
Some of the approximately 37,000-year-old animal drawings of the Chauvet Cave are covered by an almost invisible lime film, revealing an investigation with UV light that can detect natural deposits on painted rock surfaces without touching them. The mineral coating could have worked like a protective paint, but how much it contributed to preservation is still open. Paris (France). [...] The post Invisible limestone film has protected 37,000-year…
To measure accurately a horse painted 37,000 years ago, the normal thing would be to approach the wall. In Chauvet you can not. The ground preserves traces of tens of millennia ago and no one should step on it, so the researchers worked from a metal catwalk, about 2.5 meters from the rock, about [...]
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