Why tourists stopped letting tourists into the unique cave of Lasko

For the incredible number of well-preserved cave paintings, this cave in the French commune Montignac is called the "Sistine Chapel of Primeval Painting". For 15 years, thousands of tourists annually came to the Lascaux cave to see the masterpieces of late Paleolithic artists. But soon the sad consequences of such an active recreational exploitation were discovered in the cave, and for more than 50 years scientists have been unable to cope with them.

Lascaux Cave was discovered by accident in 1940. The first professional studies showed that the cave is a unique collection of cave paintings dating from the 18th-15th centuries BC. e. Excavations led to the discovery of several halls of the cave, which in total contain about 1900 images.

Such a grandiose art monument of the Paleolithic era was widely known far beyond the borders of France, and after archaeologists and specialists in cave painting, tourists came to the cave. Mass access to the Lascaux cave was opened in 1948. For the convenience of visitors and scientists in the cave, artificial lighting was carried out, stairs and observation decks were equipped.

The first alarming signals that the future of the drawings are in jeopardy came in 1955. The flow of tourists was so great that on some days a rather small cave received up to 1000 visitors, which affected the composition of the air and temperature conditions. The unique cave, which for a long time was isolated from the world and in which there was a special microclimate, felt the effects of increased air humidity and an increase in the content of carbon dioxide. These components reacted with a specific salt crust, which covered the patterns and protected them from destruction.

A special microclimate stabilization system was installed in Lasko, which, as the scientists hoped, would help to cope with this problem. But besides the existing difficulties with the destruction of the salt protective coating, a much more terrible threat arose - colonies of “green algae”. Due to the effects of artificial lighting, as well as high temperatures and humidity, microorganisms began to appear in large quantities on Lascaux walls. The measures taken to improve ventilation and decontamination of the premises did not lead to tangible results, and in 1963 it was decided to close the cave for visits. Since then, scientists have constantly carried out costly and time-consuming procedures to combat moisture, harmful microorganisms and other consequences of the 15-year-old tourist boom in the cave.

In the 80s of the last century, a copy of the Lasko-Lasko II cave was opened for visitors, which included reproductions of the best images of the delightful cave.