Altamira Cave and Museum

The Altamira Cave, discovered by Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola in 1879, is located in the grounds of the Altamira Museum on one of the hills that surround the secluded and pleasant valley that shelters the universal town of Santillana del Mar. Its discovery aroused a strong controversy among archaeologists, since they did not believe that prehistoric men were capable of making such perfect paintings. The main room, called the polychrome room, has been considered the "Sistine Chapel of Quaternary art". Its ceiling depicts almost a hundred animals and signs, including 21 bison in different attitudes, accompanied by other animals such as deer, horses, goats, bovids, as well as signs, hands and human figures, sometimes superimposed, made with various techniques - engraving, silhouetting, painting, scraping and shading effects - resulting in a composition of great movement and beauty, unique in Paleolithic art. It was made 14,000 years ago. The rest of the cave (which has a longitudinal development of 270 m) contains numerous engravings, even older, and an important archaeological site in the vestibule. The Altamira cave has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.