La Cueva de Gargas (Hautes-Pyrénées, Francia): contribución de la documentación 3D al estudio y la conservación de una cavidad con arte parietal
Foucher, P.; San Juan Foucher, C.; Angás, J. (2024). “La Cueva de Gargas (Hautes-Pyrénées, Francia): contribución de la documentación 3D al estudio y la conservación de una cavidad con arte parietal”, en Angás, J., Bea, M., Juste, M. N. (Eds.) Documentación y conservación del arte rupestre: artes prehistóricos y perspectivas presentes, ISBN 978-84-09-61314-4, pp. 35-46.
The Gargas cave is a reference cave for the European Gravettian period due to its exceptional rock
art and the richness of its archaeological site, which had already attracted the attention of prehistorians
between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
After almost a century of interruption of archaeological work in the field (excavations carried out
in 1911 and 1913 by E. Cartailhac and H. Breuil), a new research project was launched in 2004. The
programme was based on a global approach that included the revision of the old collections, the
evaluation of the archaeological potential preserved and the location of possible witnesses of the
original fill, as well as a study of the cave that took into account the dual aspect of a decorated cave
and a prehistoric habitat in an integrated manner. The aim was to better understand the functional,
spatial and chronological characteristics of the use of the site by the authors of the cave paintings.
In this comprehensive approach, it seemed obvious to us to integrate, from 2009 onwards, the digital
tool to multiply the documentary capacities of the studies and to answer questions that more
traditional methodologies cannot resolve. Several examples will be presented here in relation to the
chrono-stratigraphic context of the excavations, both on the scale of the site (plans, sections, illustrations,
etc.) and their application to the study of the remains found (examination of a human mandible
by means of microtomography). Furthermore, we will address the issue of using 3D information
for conservation and data management purposes.
The Gargas cave is a reference cave for the European Gravettian period due to its exceptional rock
art and the richness of its archaeological site, which had already attracted the attention of prehistorians
between the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
After almost a century of interruption of archaeological work in the field (excavations carried out
in 1911 and 1913 by E. Cartailhac and H. Breuil), a new research project was launched in 2004. The
programme was based on a global approach that included the revision of the old collections, the
evaluation of the archaeological potential preserved and the location of possible witnesses of the
original fill, as well as a study of the cave that took into account the dual aspect of a decorated cave
and a prehistoric habitat in an integrated manner. The aim was to better understand the functional,
spatial and chronological characteristics of the use of the site by the authors of the cave paintings.
In this comprehensive approach, it seemed obvious to us to integrate, from 2009 onwards, the digital
tool to multiply the documentary capacities of the studies and to answer questions that more
traditional methodologies cannot resolve. Several examples will be presented here in relation to the
chrono-stratigraphic context of the excavations, both on the scale of the site (plans, sections, illustrations,
etc.) and their application to the study of the remains found (examination of a human mandible
by means of microtomography). Furthermore, we will address the issue of using 3D information
for conservation and data management purposes.