Photo : HTO / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Grotte de Pech Merle
The Pech Merle cave is at Cabrerets, in the Lot, in the heart of the Causses du Quercy regional nature park. Its lower galleries were discovered in 1922 by two teenagers from the village, André David and Henri Dutertre, and Abbé Amédée Lemozi, a local prehistorian, immediately began their study. The cave has been open to the public since 1926 and listed as a historic monument in 1952. Since 1973, it has belonged to the commune of Cabrerets, which runs the visits.
The cavity extends over about two kilometres, of which about 300 metres of decorated galleries: mammoths, bison, horses, negative hands, dots and engravings, dated to more than 20,000 years (some studies suggest about 25,000 years). The natural decoration is also remarkable.
The Amédée Lemozi prehistory museum, at the entrance, presents the site with an exhibition and a film. Visits are guided and the number of visitors is limited to protect the works: booking is strongly advised.
