The Altamira cave, located near the town of Santillana del Mar, 30 km west of the city of Santander, was well known to locals, but had not been given much attention until in 1868, when it was "discovered" by the hunter Modesto Peres. Seven years later, the amateur archaeologist Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola started its exploration, and in 1879 his daughter Maria, nine years old at the time, noticed that the ceiling was covered by images of bisons. Sautuola rightly assumed that the paintings might date from the Stone Age, and engaged an archaeologist from the University of Madrid to help him. Their interpretation that the paintings dates from Paleolithic, was derided by the French specialists, Sautuola being even accused of forgery. Only in 1902 the scientific society retracted their opposition to the Spaniards, but Sautuola had died 14 years earlier, and didn't live to enjoy the restitution of his honour.
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