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One of the major characteristics of prehistoric arts is that they belong to a very specific spatial context, be it open air, rocks, shelters or caves. The presence of these images in these particular places is a mark of their identity and of the heritage left by these ancient societies and their beliefs, ever since the first cultural manifestations...
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... can be a natural adaptation considering the support, the matter of choice is still present, given that other techniques have been used on the same type of supports. Thus, in Rouffignac, on the panel of the Patriarch, there are digital traits for the mammoth tusks, whereas the chisel engraving is used for the remaining part of the animal's body (Fig. 3). The signs of Rouffignac, namely the tectiforms, have all been finger ...
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... Since prehistoric times, visual symbols have served as fundamental communication tools for humans. Archaeological evidence in the form of cave paintings illustrates how prehistoric people used symbols to depict animals, daily activities, and societal beliefs (Smith 1973;Robert 2017;Bégouen 1929). These symbols are not only historical records but also reflect deep meanings in their social and cultural contexts. ...
This study explores the strategic deployment of visual elements in the Lakeside Fit+ logo using Peirce's Triadic Model within the competitive food and beverage (F&B) industry. By analyzing how symbols, icons, and indexes such as leaf and fruit illustrations, the cup and straw, hand holding and emphatically pointing, black color, and the typographies, communicate health, freshness, and accessibility, the research elucidates the logo's effectiveness in connecting with health-conscious consumers. The methodology leveraged qualitative visual content analysis to decode these elements, offering insights into how they align with the brand's identity and consumer perceptions. The findings reveal that each component of the logo synergistically reinforces Lakeside Fit+'s commitment to quality and wellness, resonating well with the target audience. Future research is recommended to expand this analysis by comparing the visual branding strategies of other competitors. This research not only contributes to semiotic studies in marketing but also provides actionable insights for enhancing corporate brand communication in the F&B sector.
... I modelli tridimensionali favoriscono invece la comprensione dell'utilizzo del supporto per realizzare le diverse unità grafiche. È infatti noto quanto e come il supporto possa giocare un ruolo attivo nel suggerire le figure, o dando loro volume e quindi una profondità (Robert 2007(Robert , 2011(Robert , 2017Fuentes et al. 2019 ...
... Come nell'arte parietale (Robert 2007(Robert , 2017, così nell'arte mobiliare il supporto è un fattore da tenere in considerazione per la realizzazione delle unità grafiche, la loro collocazione e la costruzione grafica. ...
Theories and new methods for the review of the Italian Pa-laeolithic portable art. The study-case of Grotta Romanelli and the Dec.O. project-Grotta Romanelli (GR) (Castro, LE) has yielded the most consistent heritage of Palaeolithic portable art in Italy. The finds that fall into this class of objects number over 200 and express a wide variability not only in terms of the type of support (rock and bone), but even thematically, stylistically and technologically. The intense artistic activity between the end of the Pleistocene and the beginning of the Holocene in this coastal cave has been known since the first archaeo-paleon-tological investigations, in the early 20 th century. The impressive record of portable and parietal art made GR a reference site in the Palaeolithic studies within a few decades, together with some Spanish caves, i.e. Parpallò and La Pileta, and French sites, i.e. Baume-Latrone and Ebbou. This led soon to theorise the existence of a "Mediterranean artistic province", within which GR, thanks to its geographical location, acted as a connecting point between different artistic trends. However, studies in recent decades have shown that this paradigm in now largely outdated. The start of new research activities and a new attention paid to the artistic evidence of this site, made it urgent to systematically review the symbolic production , which had not been the subject of new critical studies for over fifty years. This urgency materialised in the launch of the research project "Dec.O.-Decorated Objects of Romanelli Cave, a key site of the late Pleistocene-early Holocene Mediterranean area", which is funded by the Fyssen Foundation, and aims to investigate the dynamics in the imagery on portable art and rock art in deep-time and the past socio-cultural influences and borders between western and southern Europe and the regions overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. The projects considers, then, the small-to-large scale cultural geographies of the last European Upper Palaeolithic fisher-hunter-gatherer societies and, focusing on portable art of a key-site such as Grotta Romanelli, at the border of what has traditionally been considered the core-zone of the Palaeolithic art tradition, i.e. western Europe, it addresses the issue of cultural change, resilience and continuity between 21-11,5 kya cal. BP. In order to achieve these objectives, a documentation method was established and is described here, together with the series of analyses and theories adopted for the global study of the corpus of portable art from Grotta Romanelli. Furthermore, by presenting a precise description of all the steps taken, which would certainly be useful for any other coherent and systematic study of Palaeolithic portable art, this work aims to become a first reference for future studies in this field, given the lack of similar publications in the Italian literature.
... Depuis les prémices des investigations sur l'espace souterrain (Rouzaud, 1990), la question de son occupation et de sa gestion apparait aujourd'hui comme l'un des aspects essentiels pour la compréhension de l'utilisation de cet espace par les groupes paléolithiques. Une véritable architecture apparaît ainsi, tant dans le lien étroit des images avec leurs supports (voir notamment Lejeune, 1985 ;Sauvet & Tosello, 1998 ;Robert, 2007 ;2016), que dans l'implantation des images sur les parois, tout comme des vides entre les panneaux (Vialou, 2004). Visibilité des parois, moyens et logiques d'éclairage, sonorité et acoustique, préparation et aménagement des parois… témoignent de l'investissement et de l'attention portée à l'environnement souterrain par les groupes du Paléolithique (voir notamment Jouteau et al., 2019 ;Intxaurbe et al., 2020 ;2022 ;Medina-Alcaide et al., 2021 ;Salmon et al., 2021). ...
Les occupations des galeries, la sélection et l’investissement des parois par les sociétés passées sont autant de témoignages des choix réalisés par des groupes préhistoriques au sein du paysage souterrain. Les traces et marques parvenues jusqu’à nous sont le produit de ces actions, modifiées ou altérées par des processus géologiques, biologiques et humains à l’œuvre sur la « matière première » que constitue la grotte. La grotte de la Mouthe (Eyzies-de-Tayac-Sireuil, Dordogne, France) présente un exemple caractéristique de l’ensemble de ces processus. Site de référence pour la reconnaissance de l’art préhistorique en 1902, 7 ans après sa découverte, il fut aussi le lieu de nombreuses innovations méthodologiques au carrefour du xixe et du xxe siècle. Depuis sa formation au Paléo-Eocène jusqu’au développement d’un abondant concrétionnement holocène dans plusieurs des salles ornées, les changements morphologiques du réseau karstique et des paysages extérieurs ont conditionné la fréquentation et influencé le décor des parois. Lieu de fréquentations répétées du Paléolithique moyen au Néolithique, elle recèle de nombreux indices du passage et de l’investissement des sociétés préhistoriques. Par une démarche intégrative associant géomorphologie, taphonomie et analyse des tracés paléolithiques au travers de relevés croisés, notre programme de recherche pluridisciplinaire vise à restituer les différentes phases de l’histoire du site sur le temps long. Nous présentons ici l’approche méthodologique originale autour des parois, et les premiers résultats observés au sein de « La Salle des Taureaux », l’une des salles ornées de la grotte de la Mouthe, où apparaissent des indices d’une construction graphique structurée au sein de l’espace souterrain, à travers les altérations géologiques et anthropiques accumulées au fil du temps.
... This discussion has focused on how heightened sensory awareness and the ambiguous nature of visual stimuli, induced by the darkness of caves, would have likely caused Palaeolithic people to experience visual imagery, priming them to depict the same animals they had perceived. There has also been extensive previous discussion pertaining to the integration of the rock support and its role in determining the placement of depictions within a cave, for example with the rock used to frame depictions or add depth and dimensionality to an animal motif (Bahn 2003;Leroi-Gourhan 1971;Lorblanchet 1995;Robert 2017;Sauvet & Tosello 1998). This literature has undoubtedly contributed to understanding the role of psychological responses to evocative features of the rock support, and the morphology of the support itself, in cave-art making. ...
The influence of pareidolia has often been anecdotally observed in examples of Upper Palaeolithic cave art, where topographic features of cave walls were incorporated into images. As part of a wider investigation into the visual psychology of the earliest known art, we explored three hypotheses relating to pareidolia in cases of Late Upper Palaeolithic art in Las Monedas and La Pasiega Caves (Cantabria, Spain). Deploying current research methods from visual psychology, our results support the notion that topography of cave walls played a strong role in the placement of figurative images-indicative of pareidolia influencing art making-although played a lesser role in determining whether the resulting images were relatively simple or complex. Our results also suggested that lighting conditions played little or no role in determining the form or placement of images, contrary to what has been previously assumed. We hypothesize that three ways of artist-cave interaction ('conversations') were at work in our sample caves and suggest a developmental scheme for these. We propose that these 'conversations' with caves and their surfaces may have broader implications for how we conceive of the emergence and development of art in the Palaeolithic.
... Approaches to Palaeolithic art have become increasingly diverse, with a movement away from focusing on the completed form as a locus of meaning, and towards an incorporation of the wider context in which art was made and experienced, especially in caves. Sensory factors -such as tactility (Pettitt et al., 2014); darkness (Pettitt 2016;Pettitt et al., 2017;Sakamoto et al., 2020); and acoustics (Fazenda et al., 2017;Jouteau et al., 2020;Reznikoff 2014;Till 2014;Waller 2019) -and contextual factorssuch as the relationship between art placement and space (Intxaurbe et al., 2020;Jouteau et al., 2019;Pettitt et al., 2017;Robert 2016;Sakamoto et al., 2020), or interactions between engraving/painting and rock surface (Bahn, 2003;Clottes 2013;Hodgson & Pettitt 2018;Pastoors & Weniger 2011;Pettitt 2016) -have been explored, drawing attention to their importance in art production and use. This approach has also seen application to portable art contexts, including consideration of the integration of support form into engraved or painted animal motifs (Conneller, 2011;Farbstein, 2013;Needham, 2017;Needham et al., 2022), the role of movement (Azéma and Rivère, 2012), and production and use in darkness (Arias, 2009). ...
Approaches to Palaeolithic art have increasingly shifted beyond the traditional focus on engraved or depicted forms in isolation, to appreciating the sensorial experience of art making as integral to shaping the form of depictions and the meaning imbued within them. This kind of research appreciates an array of factors pertinent to how the art may have been understood or experienced by people during the Palaeolithic, including placement, lighting, accessibility, sound, and tactility. This paper contributes to this “sensory turn” in Palaeolithic art research, arguing that the roving light cast by the naked flame of fires, torches or lamps is an important dimension in understanding artistic experiences. However, capturing these effects, whether during analysis, as part of interpretation, or presentation, can be challenging. A new method is presented in virtual reality (VR) modelling – applied to Palaeolithic art contexts for the first time - as a safe and non-destructive means of simulating dynamic light sources to facilitate analysis, interpretation, and presentation of Palaeolithic art under actualistic lighting conditions. VR was applied to two Magdalenian case studies: parietal art from Las Monedas (Spain) and portable stone plaquettes from Montastruc (France). VR models were produced using Unity software and digital models of the art captured via whitelight (Montastruc) and photogrammetric (Las Monedas) scans. The results demonstrate that this novel application of VR facilitates the testing of hypotheses related to the sensorial and experiential dimensions of Palaeolithic art, allowing discussions of these elements to be elevated beyond theoretical ideas.
... The French tradition of rock art research potentially offers a way out of this dilemma. There is a long-standing recognition among French scholars that a cave or rock shelter is anything but a passive canvass for signs and pictures, but rather co-constitutes the rich image worlds we collapse within the term rock art (Lorblanchet, 2000: 200-213;Pigeaud, 2007;Bon, 2009;Robert, 2017). ...
... In a prototypical case of image integration, selected components of the image-bearing rock surfaces or their structure become an integral part of the image itself, often completing the image, endowing it with shape and depth, or anchoring it within the topology of wall segments. Clefts, ravines, ridges or the natural shape and morphology of wall edges are often important material references in this context (Robert, 2017), but image integration may also be achieved in a more holistic fashion, e.g. with respect to the larger Gestalt -both physical and imagined -of the encountered rock shapes and structures. Thus, image integration can be 'pregnant' or 'discrete' (Sauvet and Tosello, 1998), the former often characterized by incomplete motifs and tinkering with associative and imaginative possibilities as well as the many ambiguities, equifinalities and multivocalities of shifting image-rock transactions. ...
... Given this general disparity in the logic, goal and functioning of image integration and image framing, it is perhaps not surprising that the two often play different and at times antagonistic roles in fashioning the image space of Upper Palaeolithic cave art in Franco-Cantabria. There is a broad tendency, for example, of widely tapping into image integration possibilities when figurative art is created, especially zoomorphic and anthropomorphic motifs, and to strongly capitalize on image framing when signs and icons are placed and composed (Robert, 2017). Elsewhere, I have referred to this mode of human-rock interactions as embedded art-making (Hussain, 2013;cf. ...
This contribution examines the multispecies matrix of parietal art-making in early human evolution. While the habitual production of rock art is often considered to flag an irreversible departure from the hominin 'state of nature', I argue that the formation, design and organization of early image worlds remain deeply ecological, and thus bound up with pregnant and rich human-nature relationships. Situating my approach within ongoing efforts to overcome so-called 'philosophies of access' and their static subject-object renderings, I show that albeit rock art is indeed to be regarded a cultural signature behaviour in the hominin lineage, early expressions of parietal art are substantially framed and co-constructed by significant nonhuman others who are variously engaged, implicated or convoked in processes of image-making. I draw on a set of key concepts from New Materialism and Human-Animal Studies and deploy the abundant archaeological evidence from Upper Palaeolithic Franco-Cantabria as well as from Late Pleistocene and Holocene rock art traditions of South America to demonstrate that our understanding of the origin, assembly and motivational background of this early imagery can be considerably enhanced if we begin to explore the active involvement of rock formations and nonhuman animals. Building on theoretical insights from Jane Bennett and others, I maintain that the archaeological evidence for early parietal art-making supports the view that rock art is a hybrid phenomenon and its genesis often linked to shifting assemblages of humans and nonhumans and their various ‘conactivisms’. Rock art carries a triple inheritance – human, mineral and animal – and as such comes into view as a human-fashioned synthesis of nature and culture, where natural potentialities and agencies meet human behavioural and cognitive horizons. This alternative apprehension of early rock art has important consequences for the evolutionary narrative of art-making in becoming human. Rather than signifying a fundamental withdrawal from nature, image-making emerges as a powerful ecological practice with the potential to re-configure and re-imagine human-nature relations in unprecedented ways while nonetheless remaining open, sensitive and responsive to other-than-human ecologies. The Homo Pictor, in this view, does not overpower the shackles of nature but instead re-integrates nature into culture to open up a whole new universe of seeing, knowing and meaning-making.
... Su estudio necesita, por tanto, de una perspectiva integral que no solo tenga en cuenta las aproximaciones iconográficas, estilísticas o de composición, además de otras variables intrínsecas a su consideración como arte. Ello implica considerar también otras dimensiones del fenómeno artístico, incluyendo los paisajes donde se encuentra, que podrían haber sido tan significativos como las propias imágenes (Lenssen-Erz, 2008;Robert, 2017) o las experiencias sensoriales que se perciban desde ellos o que proyecten hacia el entorno (Gibson, 1950;Wheatley & Gillings, 2000). ...
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Abstract:
Since the 1980s different approaches have been followed to analyse the spatial distribution of rock art shelters and their relationship to the construction of social landscapes by prehistoric societies. These approaches focus on finding out the clues that shelters offer as to how symbolic landscapes were structured or whether these were chosen following visual preferences. Previous work on post-Palaeolithic art in the Iberian Peninsula has used Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as a tool for analysis. However, sometimes, the results obtained reveal some contradictions, which could be linked to either the low resolution of the cartography available when those models were designed or to the random treatment of data. This paper attempts to overcome these contradictions by focusing on macroschematic rock art (ARM, in its Spanish acronym), an artistic manifestation with a well-defined geographical location —north of the province of Alicante (Spain)— and chronological framework —Cardial Early Neolithic; ca. 5600-5200 cal BC—. In order to analyse the symbolic and sensory landscapes generated around this artistic manifestation, different scales of analysis (Chippindale, 2004) have been implemented. Firstly, a new typology of macroschematic motifs based on an iconographic analysis is proposed. For this purpose, four major motif types are considered: anthropomorphic, zoomorphic, curvilinear geometric and minor motifs. This categorization allows for a better understanding of the semantics of this manifestation (Hernández Pérez, 2003), which draws significant parallels with other Neolithic manifestations in the Mediterranean area. Secondly, the spatial location of each rock art shelter is studied, with special attention to the quantity and variety of motifs represented in each one of them. This work has resulted in the observation of a different distribution of certain motifs. It has also revealed a different concentration in the number and variety of motifs in certain shelters that can be considered sanctuaries. Lastly, a set of GIS analytical tools have been applied to model the visual and sound perception of and from the macroschematic rock art shelters. To avoid distortions as identified in similar reconstructions carried out in previous works a prior assessment of the cartographic requirements has been made. Regarding the visibility issue, the methodology of the GIS analysis conducted has been finetuned by adding the following factors: visual field and range. For its modelling, the Individual Distance Viewshed tool designed by Fábrega-Álvarez & Parcero-Oubiña (2019) for ESRI ArcGis 10.5 has been used. In the analysis of sonority variables related to musicality, as documented in the archaeological and anthropological record, alongside technical issues associated with the propagation of sound in outdoor spaces, have been considered. For the GIS study of sound propagation Sound Mapping Tools v. 4.4 for ESRI ArcGis 10.5 (Reed et al., 2012) has been applied. This analytical work has permitted the mapping of sensory-related aspects for each site, thus facilitating a cross-site comparative analysis which has ultimately led to the identification of interesting recurrences and differences. This systematic and orderly analysis proposed has resulted in a holistic approach to the study of an artistic phenomenon as specific and unique as is macroschematic rock art. Based on the results obtained, the existence of a social landscape articulated around this artistic manifestation, in which each shelter could have played a different although complementary role, can be claimed. In this sense, we propose the existence of "main sanctuaries" that could have played an important role as social gathering spaces where visual and sound messages were conveyed. Moreover, "secondary sanctuaries" may be related to the movement of communities through the landscape and, especially, to the paths leading to the central sanctuary of Pla de Petracos (Castell de Castells, Alicante, Spain). The results of the research conducted offer a new and richer interpretation of how the communities that painted the macroschematic rock art perceived the landscape in which they lived. The importance of approaching symbolic landscapes through the prior analysis of rock art, especially of its iconographic variety, but also its internal sequence, should be emphasized. It can be concluded that the procedure followed has allowed the creation of new methodological bases for the study of other symbolic manifestations related to the social articulation of prehistoric landscapes
... The sense of dynamism and movement created by exposing the Montastruc plaquettes to a roving, low lumen light is evocative of similar lighting conditions experienced when viewing Palaeolithic art created in cave environments. Cave art spaces necessitated a mastery of dynamic elements within their immediate contexts: darkness [116][117][118]; light [126]; art placement and space [117,125,[129][130][131][132]; perhaps also sound [133][134][135][136][137][138][139][140][141][142]; and the fitting of forms to a morphologically variable and complex surface [116,[143][144][145][146]. Conceptual linkages can possibly be drawn between the negotiation of these elements in cave art and the plaquettes at Montastruc. While the scale and setting differ, some of the artistic choices that were negotiated resonate. ...
Palaeolithic stone plaquettes are a type of mobiliary art featuring engravings and recovered primarily from Magdalenian sites, where they can number from single finds to several thousand examples. Where context is available, they demonstrate complex traces of use, including surface refreshing, heating, and fragmentation. However, for plaquettes with limited or no archaeological context, research tends to gravitate toward their engraved surfaces. This paper focuses on 50 limestone plaquettes excavated by Peccadeau de l'Isle from Montas-truc, a Magdalenian rockshelter site in southern France with limited archaeological context; a feature common to many art bearing sites excavated across the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Plaquette use at Montastruc was explored via a programme of microscopy, 3D modelling, colour enhancement using DStretch©, virtual reality (VR) modelling, and experimental archaeology, the latter focusing on limestone heating related to different functional and non-functional uses. While the limited archaeological context available ensures the results remain only indicative, the data generated suggests plaquettes from Montastruc were likely positioned in proximity to hearths during low ambient light conditions. The interaction of engraved stone and roving fire light made engraved forms appear dynamic and alive, suggesting this may have been important in their use. Human neurology is particularly attuned to interpreting shifting light and shadow as movement and identifying visually familiar forms in such varying light conditions through mechanisms such as pareidolic experience. This interpretation encourages a consideration of the possible conceptual connections between art made and experienced in similar circumstances, such as parietal art in dark cave environments. The toolset used to investigate the Montastruc assemblage may have application to other collections of plaquettes, particularly those with limited associated context.
... The sense of dynamism and movement created by exposing the Montastruc plaquettes to a roving, low lumen light is evocative of similar lighting conditions experienced when viewing Palaeolithic art created in cave environments. Cave art spaces necessitated a mastery of dynamic elements within their immediate contexts: darkness [116][117][118]; light [126]; art placement and space [117,125,[129][130][131][132]; perhaps also sound [133][134][135][136][137][138][139][140][141][142]; and the fitting of forms to a morphologically variable and complex surface [116,[143][144][145][146]. Conceptual linkages can possibly be drawn between the negotiation of these elements in cave art and the plaquettes at Montastruc. While the scale and setting differ, some of the artistic choices that were negotiated resonate. ...
Palaeolithic stone plaquettes are a type of mobiliary art featuring engravings and recovered primarily from Magdalenian sites, where they can number from single finds to several thousand examples. Where context is available, they demonstrate complex traces of use, including surface refreshing, heating, and fragmentation. However, for plaquettes with limited or no archaeological context, research tends to gravitate toward their engraved surfaces. This paper focuses on 50 limestone plaquettes excavated by Peccadeau de l’Isle from Montastruc, a Magdalenian rockshelter site in southern France with limited archaeological context; a feature common to many art bearing sites excavated across the 19th and early 20th Centuries. Plaquette use at Montastruc was explored via a programme of microscopy, 3D modelling, colour enhancement using DStretch©, virtual reality (VR) modelling, and experimental archaeology, the latter focusing on limestone heating related to different functional and non-functional uses. While the limited archaeological context available ensures the results remain only indicative, the data generated suggests plaquettes from Montastruc were likely positioned in proximity to hearths during low ambient light conditions. The interaction of engraved stone and roving fire light made engraved forms appear dynamic and alive, suggesting this may have been important in their use. Human neurology is particularly attuned to interpreting shifting light and shadow as movement and identifying visually familiar forms in such varying light conditions through mechanisms such as pareidolic experience. This interpretation encourages a consideration of the possible conceptual connections between art made and experienced in similar circumstances, such as parietal art in dark cave environments. The toolset used to investigate the Montastruc assemblage may have application to other collections of plaquettes, particularly those with limited associated context.
... Lejeune, 1985;Sanchidrián, 1990;Lorblanchet, 1995Lorblanchet, , 2010Sieveking, 1997;Sauvet & Tosello, 1998;González-García, 2001;Bahn, 2003;Vialou, 2004;Villeneuve & Hayden, 2007, Garate, 2010Ruiz-Redondo, 2014;González-Sainz, 2007a, 2007bRobert, 2007Robert, , 2009Robert, , 2011Robert, , 2017Sauvet & González-Pumariega, 2017;Ochoa & García-Diez, 2018;Jouteau et al., 2019a;Sakamoto et al., 2020).This does not mean that all cave decorations of the Upper Palaeolithic follow a single universal pattern, as proposed by A. Leroi-Gourhan (1965). However, one must assume that a single cultural group might leave a non-random artistic organization in different caves, which might perhaps be determined from the archaeological and artistic record (Laming-Emperaire, 1962;Leroi-Gourhan, 1965;Vialou, 1986;Sanchidrián, 1992;Sauvet & Wlodarczyk, 1995; and/or from the placement patterns of the decoration. ...
The endokarst landscape is the result of long erosion and sedimentation processes that have modelled an environment in which capricious forms abound. Despite being a hostile environment for human life, these caves must have attracted the attention of human groups from as early as the Palaeolithic. It is striking that many examples of rock art appear to be closely symbiotic with their natural support; nevertheless, it is difficult to confirm any relationship in the distribution of the decorated spaces, based on their morphology. Moreover, if we start from the hypothesis—widely accepted, but not demonstrated—that Palaeolithic cave art is a system of visual communication, the visibility of the art or the number of people who could be accommodated in the decorated sectors should be determining factors. In order to avoid making subjective appraisals when analysing these factors, we have designed a Python script with a workflow to work directly with 3D models of caverns using GISs, which can be easily replicated and edited by other researchers. Application of this script in the Magdalenian caves of Atxurra, Santimamiñe and Altxerri (Northern Spain) has allowed us to compare them accurately based on their visibility features. This has shown that in some cases, there may have been prior planning to enhance the visibility of some figures. In all cases, the groups of figures are located in deep and hidden parts of the caves, usually in sectors with limited capacity to accommodate people, which would be consistent with a system of restricted communication.
