This is a "must see" kind of place for anyone interested in Neolithic cave art…read more The displays in the museum give context and insight into the astonishing art you see in the cave itself. The tour of the (meticulously reproduced cave) really brings out the wonder of the art, which was completed over a 500 year period 21,000 years ago! The tour guide spoke excellent English and showed a thoughtful and complete knowledge of the art and context.

This is Lascaux IV: #1 is the original cave discovered in 1940 by an 18-year-old and his dog, which…read morewas closed to public in 1963 when the light, heat, humidity, and exhalation produced by visitors was too damaging to this valuable artifact. #2 the replica opened in 1983 on the same hill. Unfortunately, the many tourists, along with their motor vehicles, continue to threaten the original cave. Thus, #4, grandly named Lascaux International Centre for Cave Art, was completed in 2016. (#3 is a traveling exhibit.) Lascaux IV can only be visited by joining the guided tour. I highly recommend you to reserve and prepay online, especially if you don't speak French, as there are very few tours in English and other languages. If you walk in and they are full, all you can see is the gift shop. At the tour, you get an tablet and a headphone. After some introduction, you walk into a replica of the cave. The cave replica was developed through 3D laser scanning and casting technologies to replicate the original cave form to a 1 millimeter tolerance. 25 artists spent 2 years hand-painting 900 meters of resin rock reproductions, using the same pigments that the prehistoric painters used 20,000 years ago to recreate the 1900 paintings and engravings that adorn the walls of the cave. Afterwards, you can spend as much time as you like in the multimedia exhibition, taking your time to take photos of the drawings, listen to more in depth explanation of each painting and watch videos about many aspect of the archeological site, which really makes me appreciate the artwork even more! Truly, the dynamic, expressive cave paintings are impressive. And that they are so ancient really give me a different impression of our prehistoric ancestors. The interactive exhibit is totally awesome, let me learn so much more than what a guided tour allows. I hope one day I can make it back again.