Page 20 - ART AND NATURE IN PREHISTORY. THE COLLECTION OF TRACINGS OF CAVE ART OF THE MUSEO NACIONAL DE CIENCIAS NATURALES

commissioncommission e nal part is a tribute to the “Commission of Paleontological and Prehistorical Researches” and its distinguished actors. A photograph panel and a reconstruction of a study of the time show the hard working conditions in which the reproductions were made. A small section dedicated to these two Commission painters leads to the closing of the exhibition, with the same panel that opened the exhibition.Close to a thousand photographs illustrate the magni cent collection of rock art of our Archives. A signi cant number of them registered the landscapes and settlements where rock art had been found, which were used as a complement to the geological and geomorphological studies carried out at the same time, and to the topographic maps of speci c caves. ere are numerous images of the entrances to these caves and coves showing the members of the Commission, some of them while reproducing the paintings. e copying process was also documented, as once in the laboratory they would not have at their disposal such a wonderful rst-hand witness.We must not forget that, as it has been seen before, all these photographs were made on glass slabs, which increased their weight considerably when having to move them.art and nature in prehistory. the collection of rock art tracings of the mncn020