Spatial-temporal reconstruction of Palaeolithic cave art through Scientific Virtual Reality: a new platform for the transfer of historical knowledge

PhD researcher: Antonio Jesús Torres Riesgo

PhD supervisor: Diego Garate Maidagan

This thesis focuses on the scientific virtual reconstruction of Palaeolithic cave art, with the aim of recreating the multisensory experience that could have been enjoyed in the underground contexts where these graphic manifestations were created.

To this end, high-resolution three-dimensional models are developed using laser scanning and photogrammetry, integrating both the immediate space of the motifs and the associated archaeological elements. Based on this data, the spatial and environmental contexts in which Palaeolithic art was produced and frequented are virtually reconstructed.

The work incorporates the models into virtual graphic engine, generating interactive environments in virtual reality. This medium allows us to experience the influence of acoustics, lighting and underground morphology on the perception of cave art. In this sense, possible criteria for choosing places to paint (e.g., their suitability for producing sound effects) are explored, and how natural or anthropogenic transformations have modified the acoustic and lighting properties of caves, affecting the visibility and perception of motifs, is analysed.

The aim is not to reproduce the exact perception of Palaeolithic individuals—given the insurmountable cultural distance—but to bring our sensory experience closer to what theirs may have been, reducing biases in the reading and interpretation of these graphic expressions.

In short, the research proposes that the perception of cave art is transformed according to the sensory stimuli (sound, light and space) of the underground environment, providing an innovative way to understand how spaces influenced the creation and reception of Palaeolithic art.