Caves at Lascaux

Fascinated by the
Caves of Lascaux
as a child,
I was only conscious
of the artistic
splendour to be
found there,
and possibly filled with
too many unanswerable
questions,
so I left it at that.

A recent virtual tour
of the caves as an
adult revealed
their real splendour to me
anew, each
image like a colourbox
of energy.

Deep within the
Pyrenees they
lie, ancient specimens,
that humanity was
permitted to view in the
20th century, as a whole
for the first time.

Who would be interested
in old cave paintings?
Many, it seems; there were
on average 1200 visitors
a day, until they had to close
due to the influx of air.

There are many wonders
of the world,
to be revisited,
re-evaluated,
and finally
understood.

copyright Monika Roleff 2005