Hi friends! Today is #FridayPaleoart again! We continue with the sites of the Duero Valley.

Site: #FozCôa
Place: Vila Nova de Foz Côa (Portugal)
Motif: auroch
Chronology: Gravettian-Solutrean

A.M. Baptista

#FozCôa is located in Vila Nova de Foz Côa, over the Côa river (Portugal).
This site is one of the most important open-air rock art in the Iberian Peninsula.
https://www.arte-coa.pt/ 

The first engraved ensembles in Foz Côa were discovered in the 80s. Later, in 1998, it was declared a World Heritage Site by @UNESCO.

All the motifs were made on schist supports except at the Faia site where the granite support was used. Horses and auroch are the dominant themes in Foz Côa. In this thread we’re going to talk about aurochs with heads in frontal vision.

In rock 24th of Foz de Piscos we find three auroch with heads in frontal view, probably made by the same artist. The most complete has a head with a snout (indicating the nostrils) eyes, horns, back, tail, hind legs, belly, foreleg and chest.

There are two another less complete auroch. They have a head with a snout (indicating the nostrils) and are represented with eyes, horns, back line of chest.

In rock 1 of Quinta da Barca, located between the crossing of the Côa river and the Quinta da Barca stream, there are two representations of aurochs and one of an ibex with heads in frontal view. This panel is one of the most impressive at the site.

You can find more information about this site in the monograph by A. M. Baptista (2009).

"O Paradigma Perdido: O Vale do Côa e a Arte Paleolítica em Portugal."

P. García-Bustos ( @gbustospaula)

End of thread!!!