Prehistomania

• WE LIKE: a discovery of rock art. It’s exciting, moving and very accessible to the youngest
• AGE: from 7 years old
• DATE : until May 20, 2024
• OPENING HOURS : from 11am to 7pm
• CLOSED : Tuesdays, December 25th, January 1st, and May 1st
• LOCATION: on the 2nd floor of the Musée de l’Homme (Paris 16th)
• DURATION : 45min approx.
• FREE : for under 18s (and under 26 EU nationals)
• WORKSHOP PRICE : €5

From the cave to the museum… “Préhistomania” is the testimony of a priceless heritage

“This very educational exhibition takes visitors on a journey to follow archaeologists on their expeditions, and leads them to reflect on the universal notions of scientific testimony, safeguarding, and the heritage of Humanity”

• “Préhistomania” is an astonishing exhibition that traces the way in which rock art (the oldest drawings left by humanity, through faithful reproductions) has been made known to the public
• It is a moving dive into the discovery of the roots of Humanity
• This is an opportunity to see representations of hundreds of works of rock art from all over the world
• On the walls, reproductions of rock art dating back thousands of years and so moving : handprints, hunting scenes with bison or antelopes
• The exhibition Préhistomania is dedicated to rock art surveys by the scientific community
• It is a set of paintings on canvas or paper that reproduce works painted or engraved on the walls of prehistoric caves
• In search of the origins of Man, these testimonies have been produced since the beginning of the twentieth century during incredible scientific expeditions around the world
• It was by presenting them, from the 1930s onwards, in the most prestigious museums, that these surveys of prehistoric works found themselves confronted with modern works of art
• Art critics and artists of the time, fascinated, discovered on this occasion an ancestral “modernity”, close to their own… they recognized themselves in it and drew inspiration from it
• Several great painters such as Paul Klee, Arp, Pollock and Wifredo Lam interact in the exhibition with archaeological surveys on canvas.
• With the help of photo-reports, we discover the art of surveying and its evolution towards current techniques
• Finally, the exhibition leads to the need to safeguard these survey works, their importance as a testimony to a fragile and priceless heritage, often in danger of destruction or disappearance