science · 28 February 1877 · 147 years ago
birth
Born 28 Feb 1877; died 14 Aug 1961 at age 84.
Henri-Édouard-Prosper Breuil was a French archaeologist, who was an authority on Paleolithic cave paintings, especially in France and Spain. He was ordained a priest (1900). At various important sites, he diligently recorded cave art in colour reproductions. When making interpretations, and related them, he was careful to avoid unsubstantiated conclusions regarding the religious or social aspects of the primitive painters. In a classic paper (1912), he made a reclassification of Paleolithic industries. In 1940, he was the first to visit and describe Lascaux. After WW II, he travelled extensively in Africa for nearly six years examining and creating images of the art in thousands of rock shelters.
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