Chauvet 2

Three cavers found the Chauvet cave in December 1994 behind a rockfall that had sealed it for tens of thousands of years, and inside were hundreds of paintings dated to around thirty-six thousand years ago, among the oldest known: lions, rhinoceroses, mammoths and bears drawn with shading, perspective and overlapping outlines that suggest movement. The original was closed immediately to protect it and will not open. Chauvet 2, finished in 2015, reproduces about three thousand square metres of it at full size with the paintings copied by artists, along with the humidity, temperature and darkness. It is the largest cave replica in the world.

What you actually see

• The painted panels - lions, rhinos and horses copied at full size.
• The cave conditions - darkness, cold and damp reproduced deliberately.
• The bear traces - hollows and claw marks of cave bears recreated.
• The Aurignacian gallery - a museum on the people and animals of the period.

When to go

Year-round; the site closes some winter weeks and on Mondays out of season. Visits are guided and timed, and summer slots sell out, so book ahead.

Honest expectations

This is a replica, and some visitors find that disappointing; the original will never open to anyone but researchers. It is cold inside, around twelve degrees. Tours are in French with English options at set times.

Nearby

The Pont d'Arc is a few kilometres away; the Ardeche gorges start there.