The cave of Villars

An interest that is both geological and prehistoric

150 million years ago, in the "Jurassic" era, the underground river dug, in the heart of this natural cavity, a tangle of galleries and rooms extending over more than 13 kilometers and several levels. These rooms are bristling with calcite flows, fine stalactites, stalagmites, draperies and other fistulae which constitute one of the most beautiful natural decorations there is.

The prehistoric part is decorated with paintings made more than 19,000 years ago representing horses, ibex and bison. They are the authentic testimony of the parietal art of the first men. Some, like the "horse rotunda", are covered with a thin film of calcite which gives them a very special blue color. One of a kind, the “buffalo and sorcerer” scene is one of the few human depictions in prehistoric art.

The prehistoric trail

Who were the men who painted the cave walls at Villars? How did they live on a daily basis? Through quizzes, puzzles, botanical panels, you will discover the little secrets of Cro-Magnon man by following the prehistoric path!

Villars Cave

24530 VILLARS

Tel: 05 53 54 82 36

Website: www.grotte-villars.com