Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Laugerie-Basse is a rock shelter located in the commune of Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Dordogne, on the right bank of the Vézère. Occupied in the Upper Paleolithic, it consists of two separate shelters: the "classical" shelter (covered and partially covered by troglodyte houses) and the shelter of the Marseilles (conserved under rubble and still visitable). This site has delivered iconic objects such as the Injudic Venus (female stature with broken head) and the Women in Reindeer badge, testifying to Magdalenian art.

The first excavations, conducted in the 1860s by Édouard Lartet, did not accurately record stratigraphy. It was established around World War I, revealing four phases of the Magdalenian (stages III to VI) during Würm IV. In 1864 Paul Hurault discovered the impudent Venus, while Louis Landesque later identified the Reindeer Woman. These works, among 600 exhumed objects, illustrate the artistic richness of the site.

Ranked a historic monument in 1940 and an archaeological site in 1977, Laugerie-Basse has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979 with other sites in the Vézère Valley. Acquired by the Dordogne department in 2011, it today attracts 58,000 annual visitors (2022), in connection with the nearby Grand Roc cave. Its protection reflects its importance for the understanding of Magdalenian and prehistoric art.

The site is distinguished by its stratigraphy preserved in the Marseilles shelter, where scali have favoured the conservation of archaeological layers. Subsequent excavations, such as those of Henri Breuil (1935) or Alain Roussot (1974), have deepened the study of carved objects (lamps, statuettes). The controversy surrounding Reindeer Woman, analysed by Brigitte and Gilles Delluc (2002), highlights the ongoing interpretative debates on these artifacts.

Located 2 km northwest of the Eyzies, Laugerie-Basse is set in a karst landscape rich in adorned caves. Its access by road D47 and its proximity to the Grand Roc make it a key place for prehistoric tourism in New Aquitaine. The successive protections (national and international classifications) guarantee the sustainability of this exceptional testimony of Magdalenian societies.

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