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      Interpreting the Rock Paintings of Abri Faravel: laser and white-light scanning at 2,133m in the southern French Alps

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      Internet Archaeology
      Council for British Archaeology

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          Abstract

          The Abri Faravel, discovered in 2010 at 2,133m asl in the Parc National des Ecrins, Freissinières, Southern French Alps, is probably the most enigmatic high altitude site in the Alps. This rock shelter saw phases of human activity from the Mesolithic through to the medieval period; the artefactual assemblages comprise Mesolithic and Neolithic flint tools, Iron Age hand-thrown pottery, a Roman fibula and some medieval metalwork. However, the most interesting and unique feature on the site are the prehistoric rock paintings; the highest representations of animals (quadrupeds) in Europe. These paintings are presented in this article. The paintings themselves were the object of a white-light scan, whilst the rock-shelter and surrounding landscape was scanned using a Faro laser scanner. Both of these models are presented here, and their interpretation elucidated by an assessment of the different phases of activity at the shelter, combined with a synthesis of other evidence from the area and pertinent environmental evidence.

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          Author and article information

          Journal
          Internet Archaeology
          IA
          Council for British Archaeology
          13635387
          2016
          2016
          :
          : 42
          Affiliations
          [1 ]University of York
          Article
          10.11141/ia.42.1
          237b3262-0eba-4533-8622-5c24a04ac139
          © 2016

          This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

          History

          Pre-history,Early modern history,Archaeology,Anthropology,Ancient history,History
          Pre-history, Early modern history, Archaeology, Anthropology, Ancient history, History

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