Pech Merle Cave

Two teenagers found the painted galleries in 1922, and Pech Merle remains one of the few original decorated caves open to the public. The best-known panel shows two horses back to back covered in black spots, with hand stencils around them, made roughly twenty-five thousand years ago; the spots were long thought symbolic until genetic work showed leopard-spotted horses actually existed in Palaeolithic Europe. Elsewhere are mammoths, bison and a female figure. In one gallery a line of human footprints is preserved in hardened clay. Daily visitor numbers are capped to control humidity, so booking ahead is sensible in summer.

What you actually see

• The spotted horses - a panel of dappled horses with hand stencils.
• The footprints - human tracks preserved in hardened cave clay.
• The mammoth and bison drawings - black outline animals in further galleries.
• The formations - natural concretions along the guided route.

When to go

The cave opens roughly April to early November and closes over winter. Numbers are capped daily and summer slots book out. It is cool inside, around twelve degrees.

Honest expectations

Daily capacity is limited and turning up without booking in July or August often fails. Photography is prohibited. The route has steps and uneven floors.

Nearby

Saint-Cirq-Lapopie lies south; Figeac is northeast.