EUSKADITIK OSE J AN S ONIA S © One of the galleries of the Praileaitz cave and a pendant in the shape of Venus found inside the cave. Cave paintings discovered in Deba, Gipuzkoa The discovery of cave paintings at The cave paintings found at necklaces with 29 pendants lain Praileaitz I, an archeological site Praileaitz I may be as old as hidden for 15,500 turned the in the town of Deba, Gipuzkoa, 20,000 years and have spotlight on this cave. All may mark a before and after in provisionally been catalogued as indications point to the site having how we interpret Basque representations made during the been used for some sort of magical prehistory.The discovery happened Solutrean period. For the time or spiritual ritual. last August, and although data has being the only thing we know for Last June the Provincial yet to be verified, there is an certain is that the find consists of Council of Gipuzkoa and the Deba atmosphere of great expectation – groups of dots and lines, as Town Hall signed an agreement and a lot of excavating and opposed to the groups animals whereby the two institutions would unearthing still to do. (horses, bison, bears, deer, etc.) contribute 218,000 euros over the It is almost certain that these found in Ekain and Altxerri, the next to years to support the paintings date back further than only two caves in Gipuzkoa where excavations undertaken by Xabier the impressive portrayals of paintings have been found. Peñalver’s team. animals in Ekain, Zestoa (Middle The Praileaitz I cave was The Basque Government has and Upper Magdalenian), and discovered in 1983 by Mikel already begun the process of of Altxerri in the municipality of Aia Sasieta and Juan Arruabarrena, attaining ‘cultural property’ status (Late Upper Magdalenian) – members of the Munibe group of for the paintings in accordance somewhere between 12,000 and Azkoitia. Since 2000 with the Basque Cultural Heritage 15,000 years. That means they archaeologist Xabier Peñalver of Act of 1990, and has requested also predate the Santimamiñe the Aranzadi Society of Sciences the necessary measures be taken cave paintings in Bizkaia, which has led a series of excavations in to provide the paintings with the date back 13,000 years. the area. The discovery of five highest level of protection. 28 EUSKAL ETXEAK Issue 75. Year 2006.