FRENCH HISTORY

Prehistoric France

A dog disappearing into a hole in the ground in southern France during World War II led to the discovery of the Lascaux cave paintings. These caves are thought to have been painted more than 20,000 years ago. The story of this extraordinary find is a good reminder of how incredibly long humans have inhabited the land we now call France.

Artefacts discovered in the Vézère Valley in the Dordogne suggest France was inhabited more than 20,000 years ago by a variety of homo sapiens who archaeologists call Cro-Magnon. Discoveries in the Vézère Valley also suggest Cro-Magnons lived in huts made of clay, rocks, branches and animal hides. They had tools and weapons such as antler-tipped spears, and they probably knew how to weave clothing. Many of these artefacts can be seen in Dordogne’s museums.

There are 175 known prehistoric sites in the Dordogne region. Of these sites, the Lascaux paintings are the most famous. 

Around 7,500 – 4,000 BC (the Neolithic period) people are believed to have started farming, cultivating crops and herding animals. This period is also associated with the arrival of the Celts who came from the east. The most famous evidence of this period can be seen in Carnac, Brittany, where you’ll find the world’s greatest concentration of megalithic sites. 

The Celts brought with them a more complex social hierarchy including priests (druids), warriors, artisans and farmers. In 1953 a French archaeologist discovered the tomb of a Celtic princess near Châtillon-sur-Seine in eastern France. The artefacts found in the tomb revealed the level of cultural sophistication people had adopted by 500 BC. This collection (le Trésor de Vix) is now on display at the Musée du Châtillonnais, Châtillon-sur-Seine, Bourgogne (Burgundy).