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THE AUROCHS
Sexual dimorphism in the aurochs shows
itself in many ways. The horns of the males are more developed and
thicker (ill. 141), whereas in females, the much more delicate horns
have a much shorter span across their curvature (ill. 142). Furthermore,
the outline of the cows is more gracile. In males, their stockiness is
exaggerated by the short forelimbs and a highly expanded chest, while
the facial angle is more open.
These features were interpreted by Breuil
as possibly belonging to two distinct varieties of aurochs:
'Cattle-bulls ... are only really abundant at Lascaux, where two species
are represented: first Aurochs primigenius, then Aurochs longifrons.''
[29] This hypothesis was contested by Koby, [30] who showed that these
differences were due to the respective sex of the animals. The coat
allows a similar distinction between males and females. This difference
is recognizable on the forequarters, more particularly on the shoulder
and the head. The male aurochs has a scatter of dots, which can extend
to the dewlap. This detail is found on the majority of the bulls,
particularly those of the Hall of the Bulls. It is found on three
of the four heads underneath the upper line of the Great Black Bull in
the Axial Gallery. On the facing wall, the head above the Falling Cow
does not bear this scatter of dots, which does not mean much as this
figure was unfinished (the eye was also not drawn).
143 Red stag from the group between
the two great confronted bulls of the Hall of the Bulls. At Lascaux,
antlers -- a clear seasonal indicator -- take on impressive dimensions.
The use of colour inside the outline of
the head and the beginning of the body show a highly localized
development of the coat. In the male, the difference between the
thickness of the hair of the forequarters and the hindquarters is much
more marked in summer than in winter, and from this observation it seems
that most of the male aurochs represented at Lascaux were depicted in
their summer form. The entire group of female aurochs, with their lack
of hairiness, confirms this interpretation.
The outline of a young bovine (ill. 54)
located behind the fourth bull of the Hall of the Bulls corroborates
this analysis. The outline of this calf is closely dependent on the
image of the red cow located in front of it, with which it is integrated
graphically. The spaces between the head and thigh demonstrate that the
calf and the cow belong to the same painting. They are nor two
juxtaposed painted figures, bur one and the same entity, and the
proportions of one subject to the other are rendered faithfully. The
size of the calf, which places it well below the dorsal line of the cow,
and its very developed forelimbs indicate an age of between three and
five months. This suggests that the young bovine is, like the adults, an
animal in summer.
THE STAGS
The seasonal characteristics of the male
red deer are even more marked than those of the aurochs or horse. They
are predominantly visible in the growth of the antlers (ill. 143). At
Lascaux, this attribute is all the more revealing as, in the majority of
stags, it takes on enormous proportions. The brow and the bez tines are
very developed, as is the crown, and there is also a systematic
bifurcation of the trez tines, although this is exceptional both in
recent red deer and among palaeontological remains. Whether they are
drawn in a frieze or painted at the heart of a different composition,
the Lascaux stags often form part of a group, as in the frieze of the
Swimming Stags. The presence of antlers and the representation of a
gregarious behaviour indicate a quite specific time of the year: male
red deer band together shortly before the mating display at the
beginning of autumn. The agitation of the black stag at the entrance to
the Axial Gallery corroborates this observation. The head and the
thrown-back antlers (ill. 65), the open mouth and the rolled-back eye
are typical of the rut (ill. 144).
OBSERVATIONS
Analysis of seasonal indicators
establishes that each species represented at Lascaux represents a very
specific period of the calendar. The horses mark the end of winter or
the beginning of spring, the aurochs high summer, whereas the stags have
been represented with the attributes of autumn. This is not by chance.
Each of these species has been represented at a quite explicit phase of
the annual cycle, at the beginning of mating. At this time, they are
extremely active and animated. From this point of view, the animal
figures of Lascaux contrast with those of numerous other decorated
sites, where the images present a much more static outline. The
iconography of this cave is, above all, a fantastic ode to life.
144 Black stag, Axial Gallery. The
thrown-back head and antlers, the open mouth and the rolled-back eye are
distinctive signs of the rut.
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