Deep below Spanish town, 14,000-year-old paintings

Rock paintings dating back perhaps 14,000 years have been found in a cave deep under a building in the Basque resort town of Leketio, but they’re not on their way to becoming a visitor attraction.

The find was announced last week by local officials, who said the find had been made last May. Announcement was withheld to allow cave specialists and archaeologists to examine them. They will present their findings at a special congress at the end of October.

Both to preserve the paintings and because access would be very difficult, the cave will not be opened to the public. The 50 paintings of horses, bison and lions are up to 150 cm and are being called the most “spectacular and striking” ever found in the Iberian Peninsula.