Altamira Cave is a cultural landmark in the history of mankind. Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola's discovery of the paintings in the cave in 1879 was the first discovery of Palaeolithic cave art, and the cave is of one of the most spectacular sites.
Bison, horses, deer, hands and mysterious signs, both painted and engraved, are the artistic expression of the inhabitants of the cave 15,000 years ago, in the Upper Palaeolithic. Altamira Cave became a World Heritage site in 1985.
