The Mas d'Azil cave ( French: ''Grotte du Mas-d'Azil'') is a cave located in the French commune of Mas-d'Azil, in the department of Ariège in

Occitania Occitania is the historical region in Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasses much of the southern third of France (except ...

. The cave was occupied during various prehistoric periods and gave its name to a

Mesolithic The Mesolithic (Ancient Greek language, Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic i ...

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

, the

Azilian The Azilian is a Mesolithic archaeological industry, industry of the Franco-Cantabrian region of northern Spain and Southern France. It dates approximately 10,000–12,500 years ago. Diagnostic Cultural artifact, artifacts from the culture includ ...

. It is also one of the few caves in the world that can be crossed by car.

Location

The cave is located on the right bank of the Arize river and is 1 km south of the village of Mas-d'Azil, in the western part of the Ariège department. Saint-Girons (the department's subprefecture) is 25 km to the south-west and

Foix Foix ( , ; ; ) is a commune, the former capital of the County of Foix. It is the capital of the department of Ariège as it is the seat of the prefecture of that department. Foix is located in the Occitanie region of southwestern France ...

(the prefecture) is 30 km to the south-east.

Prehistory

Occupation

Multiple prehistoric groups settled in the cave. The remains include the ''Faon aux oiseaux'' ''(''Fawn with Birds), a spear thrower dated to the Middle

Magdalenian Magdalenian cultures (also Madelenian; ) are later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic in western Europe. They date from around 17,000 to 12,000 years before present. It is named after the type site of Abri de la Madeleine, a ro ...

(15,000 to 13,500 years BP), the ''Coco des roseaux'', a Magdalenian hunting scene with a rudimentary human figure, engraved on a fragment of an animal shoulder blade, as well as a young girl's skull, "Magda" (15,000 years old) with two carved bone plates simulating eyes in the orbits. The cave also contains several decorated galleries, such as the Breuil gallery or the Reindeer gallery, in which representations of bison, fish, horse hindquarters,

ibex An ibex ( : ibex, ibexes or ibices) is any of several species of wild goat (genus ''Capra''), distinguished by the male's large recurved horns, which are transversely ridged in front. Ibex are found in Eurasia, North Africa and East Africa. T ...

head, human face, ect can be found. In 1992, a total of nine human representations were recorded in the cave. The cave gave its name to the

, a prehistoric culture of the

Epipaleolithic In archaeology, the Epipalaeolithic or Epipaleolithic (sometimes Epi-paleolithic etc.) is a period occurring between the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic during the Stone Age. Mesolithic also falls between these two periods, and the two are someti ...

(around 12,000 to 9,500 years BP) between the

and the

. There is a

microlithic A microlith is a small stone tool usually made of flint or chert and typically a centimetre or so in length and half a centimetre wide. They were made by humans from around 60,000 years ago, across Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. The microlit ...

industry, with flat harpoons and many painted pebbles (with red ochre dating back 10,000 years). In the

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

period (5,000 to 2,500 BP), many

dolmens A dolmen, () or portal tomb, is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the Late Neolithic period (40003000 BCE) and w ...

were erected in and around the village. Pottery, included from the

Gauls The Gauls (; , ''Galátai'') were a group of Celts, Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age Europe, Iron Age and the Roman Gaul, Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). Th ...

, was also found in the cave.

Archaeological excavations

The road within the cave was constructed based on a 1857 plan. The excavation work caused the deplacement of

sediment Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...

, and archaeological remains then appear on the right bank in the area. For almost 40 years (between the end of the 1840s and the 1880s), geologist studied the cave. He mainly looked for fossil bones and topographed the area. Doctor Félix Garrigou also visited the cave in 1862 and published an article in 1867. After the flood of the Arize in 1875, new excavations were organized by Félix Régnault and Tibulle Ladevèze. From 1887 to 1894, Édouard Piette explored the cave, established a prehistoric chronology based on the evolution of artistic productions and introduced the term of

. One room bears his name today. In 1901 and 1902, Henri Breuil studied

parietal art In archaeology, rock arts are human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type al ...

. Research resumed in the middle of the 20th century by Marthe and . In 1937, they explored the Silex gallery and discovered one of the most important Magdalenian habitats in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...

. They discovered objects there such as the ''Faon aux oiseaux'' (in 1940) and the pierced stick with a horse protome. From the mid-1930s to 1950s, Joseph Mandement and his wife explored the right bank of the cave by unblocking and clearing new galleries and cavities. They found, among others, the Bear gallery (''Gallerie de l'ours'') and the skull called "Magda" in 1948. André Alteirac conducted a series of excavations and studies during the 1960s and 1970s. In 1977, he invited Denis Vialou, a member of the

National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. With 4.4 ...

, to study the parietal art of the "Breuil Gallery". He also created the Museum of Prehistory in 1981. In the 1980s, François Rouzaud, an archaeologist and speleologist, produced a plan of the cave for the Ministry of Culture, which was never published. From 2011 to 2013, new developments were carried out, including the construction of an interpretation centre to welcome the public. During a preventive excavation carried out by the Inrap (), dwellings from 35,000 years BP, from the

Aurignacian The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with Cro-Magnon, Early European modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the L ...

period, were discovered. A team of researchers from the

University of Toulouse-Jean Jaurès University of Toulouse-Jean Jaurès ( , formerly known as ''Université de Toulouse-Le Mirail'' , also called Toulouse II or UT2J) is a French public university located in Toulouse, France. It is one of the 3 successor universities of the Univers ...

has been working in the cave since 2013. They are carrying out a major general inventory of the cave and the entire massif. Several lines of research are being developed around cartography, geology and archaeology.

Some objects found in the cave

Spear-thrower titled "Fawn with birds" ()

File:Faon aux oiseaux face 1.jpg, Full view of the

spear-thrower A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever, or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Classical Nahuatl, Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in Dart (missile), dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a Plain bearing, b ...

File:Propulseur - Faon aux oiseaux.jpg, Part view of the spear-thrower File:Faon aux oiseaux detail.jpg, Detail of the spear-thrower

Other carvings

File:Paleolithic horse3.JPG, File:Figurine féminine dans une dent de cheval - Mas D'azil (Ariège).jpg, File:Musée d'Archéologie Nationale grotte mas d'azil propulseur.JPG,

Bone carvings

File:Harpon 2010.0.3.5. Global simple .JPG, File:Harpons aziliens - MAN 18 19.jpg, File:Fragment osseux peint du Mas d'Azil - MAN.jpg,

Stone carvings

File:Perçoirs aziliens - MAN 26 27 28.jpg, File:Pointes aziliennes MAN 29 30 31.jpg,

Painted pebbles

File:Galet peint MHNT.PRE.2006.0.100.jpg, File:Galet peint MHNT.PRE.2006.0.93.jpg, File:Galet peint MHNT.PRE.MAZ.15.jpg, File:Galets peints Mas d'Azil - MAN 61 62 64 65.jpg, File:Galets peints Mas d'Azil - MAN 61 62 63.jpg,

Engraved pebbles

File:Galet gravé Mas d'Azil - MAN 55.jpg, File:Galet gravé Mas d'Azil - MAN 45.jpg,

History

During the first centuries of the

Common Era Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the ...

, persecuted Christians established a place of prayer in the cave. The place also served as a refuge for the

Cathars Catharism ( ; from the , "the pure ones") was a Christian quasi- dualist and pseudo-Gnostic movement which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France, between the 12th and 14th centuries. Denounced as a he ...

of the 13th century, and then for the

Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

in the 17th century, who took refuge there during the unsuccessful siege led in 1625 by Marshal de Thémines against the Mas-d'Azil. In retaliation, one clause of the

Peace of Alès The Peace of Alais, also known as the Edict of Alès or the Edict of Grace, was a treaty negotiated by Cardinal Richelieu with Huguenot leaders and signed by King Louis XIII of France on 28 June 1629. It confirmed the basic religious principles o ...

provided for the destruction of the cave's fortifications, done in 1632. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the cave was requisitioned from 1 June 1940 for the Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques du Midi, which planned to establish a factory for parts for its aircraft there. The work undertaken stopped in July of the same year following the defeat of the French armies. The German occupying troops considered installing workshops for their aircraft there but the project was abandoned and the cave served to stock and repair planes.

Protection and tourism

Tourism in the cave was enhanced after the end of the Second World War, thanks to the influx of holidaymakers, prompted by the policies of the Popular Front. Major developments, included the installation of electricity, happened. In 1942, the cave was classified as a

historical monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

. In 2009, the was created, which includes the Mas-d'Azil. The surroundings of the cave therefore benefit from the protection imposed by the park rules. Parts of the cave are now available to the public. A vestige of prehistoric habitat can be visited in the upper parts of the galleries. In addition to the cave, there is a museum relating the prehistoric history of the region, in the village of Mas-d'Azil.

References

{{coord, 43.0694, 1.3554, type:landmark_region:FR, display=title Caves of Occitania (administrative region)