Chief custodian of French Lascaux Cave arrived in Bashkiria to study Shulgan-Tash Cave

UFA, 20 February 2019. /Bashinform News Agency, Leila Aralbaeva/ translated by Tatiana Aksyutina/. These days a French scientist, chief custodian of the heritage of the National Center for the History of Primitive Society Jean-Michel Geneste is visiting Bashkortostan. Today, in Ufa, he took part in the work of the board of the State Guard Department of Cultural Heritage Sites RB, visited the exhibition and departed to Burzyan district to explore the Shulgan-Tash Cave.

“The Shulgan-Tash Cave is very close to the rock art caves that we know in Europe, including France and Spain. The difference between the Shulgan-Tash Cave is that in addition to drawings of mammoths, horses, rhinos, there is also an image of a double-humped camel. Besides, there are images of signs. It is important that this cave brings Asia closer to Europe,” says the scientist. “We are invited to develop scientific cooperation. The future museum-reserve of the Shulgan-Tash Cave will attract a large number of tourists, will boost the development of the economy and culture of the republic. ”

Jean-Michel Geneste until 2014 was the director of the single laboratory in France that dealt exclusively with cave paintings. The custodian, and then the director of scientific research of the Lascaux Cave, he has been engaged in archaeological research of rock art caves for more than 20 years. He supervises the interdisciplinary program of the Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave, which brings together about 50 international researchers.

Jean-Michel Geneste is an initiator of 3D scanning programs for Lascaux and Chauvet Caves. He participated in the creation of more than 100 scientific documentaries and films.

Also, Hugues Plisson, a member of the scientific committee of the International Prehistory Center is in Ufa with a working visit. The primary purpose of the foreign scientists' visit is to prepare materials for the compilation of an updated catalog of rock paintings of the Shulgan-Tash Cave.