Pech Merle cave

Pech Merle is a decorated Paleolithic cave near the village of Cabrerets in the Lot department of southwestern France, famous for its prehistoric parietal art including spotted horses and hand stencils. The panels in the cave are among the best-known examples of Upper Paleolithic cave painting in France.

Visitors enter by guided tour to see multiple painted panels and chambers featuring animal motifs, human figures and stencilled hands rendered in ochre and black pigments. The site is managed to conserve the paintings and tours are limited in size and frequency to protect the artworks.

The pictorial sequences in Pech Merle date to the Upper Paleolithic, roughly on the order of 20,000 to 30,000 years ago, and the cave was opened to modern knowledge in the early 20th century. Conservation work and controlled public access have been ongoing to balance study and visitation.

Pech Merle is located near Cabrerets in the Lot department of the Occitania region, set in limestone countryside popular with cultural tourists and spelunking enthusiasts. The cave is reachable by road from the surrounding towns and is a scheduled cultural site.

• Age and access: Contains Paleolithic cave paintings dated to roughly 25,000 years ago and is one of the decorated caves in France that remains accessible to the public under guided tours.
• Visitor information: Visits are by guided tour only with limits on group size to protect the paintings; booking in advance is recommended during the tourist season.

What to See #

• Hall of the Hands: A chamber known for its numerous paleolithic hand stencils and painted motifs, where visitors can closely view the negative handprints and ochre pigments under guided supervision.
• Spotted Horses panel: The panel displaying the famous spotted-horse paintings and accompanying animal motifs, one of the cave's best-known and most-photographed prehistoric artworks.