Les Eyzies-de-Tayac - New Centre for Prehistory Opened

[france-vacances.co.uk]

With the aim of bringing an entertaining as well as educative experience to the discovery of the origins of mankind, a brand new centre of Prehistory has been inaugarated at Les Eyzies in the Dordogne.

The Vezere Valley in the Dordogne has been inhabited by man for as long as 400,000 years, it was here in 1868 that Cro-Magnon man was first identified. Much of our knowledge about the origins of man is related to discoveries made in the region over the last two hundred years

 

There are 15 prehistoric sites recognised by UNESCO and this is unique in the world. However, although the prehistoric caves at Lascaux attract 250,000 visitors each year these other sites are less known

The new centreis accessed by a bridge from the Sarlat road, giant screens, 3D mock ups and multimedia presentation bring fun and an educational experience to the visitor, in three languages, French, English and Spanish. The reference library and reading room has access to over 36,000 documents on prehistory.

The continuing development of tourism focused on the prehistory of the Dordogne will see a worldwide exhibition of reproductions of stone age art on a global tour in 2012 and the future construction in 2014 at Montignac at the foot of the hill of Lascaux of a center dedicated to prehistoric art

When visiting the area which is steeped in history and pre-history you can either choose to stay in a hotel, chambre d'hote (bed and breakfast accommodation) or select a self-catering property like Cottage Le Capiol in the scenic village of Cenac et Saint Julien on the River Dordogne or La Sarladise in the town centre of medieval Sarlat