Expert: John J. Shea - 3/25/2006

Question
Dear John, me and my collegues at hartpury college, gloucester, uk have to do a presentation on a subject connected with our module - 'the human animal'. we have decided to do our talk on cave paintings from the palaeolithic. i was wondering if you could send me any suggestions as to which are the best examples of this type of art to talk about. i was also wondering if you could suggest any sites where i could get more information as to the theories behind the cave art and its connections to the development of human communication and expression. any ideas would be greatly appreciated, regards
emma  

Answer
Dear Emma
The best-documented cave art sites are Lascaux, Altamira, and Chauvet.  Many images from these sites are available online.
There are countless websites devoted to this subject, but it can be difficult for students without much guidance to sort those put up by lunatics from those by experts.
For my money, the best reference on Upper Paleolithic art are Paul Bahn's book, Journey through the Ice Age and Randall White's Dark Caves, Bright Visions.  Both books are written for non-professionals, and they cover most of the major theories.
I do not know of any particular website that I would recommend as an authoritative source on major theories.
Sincerely,
John Shea