UNESCO lists Spanish cave paintings

Source: Agencies  |   2008-7-9  |     ONLINE EDITION

PAINTINGS in northern Spain which cavemen created between 35,000 to 11,000 BC have won World Heritage status from UNESCO, the country's Culture Ministry said yesterday.

The paintings from the Paleolithic age showing animals such as bison and horses are in the Altamira cave in the Cantabria region. The cave was declared a heritage site in 1985.

Spain's Culture Ministry said in a statement that UNESCO had particularly valued the fact that the paintings were "perfectly dated and recognised by the scientific community".

The paintings have survived throughout history because of their isolation from external climatic influences, the United Nations body said in a statement on its website.

"The caves are inscribed as masterpieces of creative genius and as humanity's earliest accomplished art," UNESCO said.

"They are also inscribed as exceptional testimonies to a cultural tradition and as outstanding illustrations of a significant stage in human history."

UNESCO added the caves along with 12 other new world sites, including the Preah Vihear Temple in Cambodia and the Monarch Butterfly Bioreserve in Mexico.