Conservation of the Chauvet-Pont d'Arc Cave

The Chauvet-Pont d'Arc Cave was discovered on 18 December 1994. It is protected as a historical monument and since 22 June 2014, this extraordinary cave has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Discover the cave room by room with the virtual tour

After his expertise on January 2, 1995 by Jean Clottes who authenticated it as one of the oldest places frequented and decorated by man, the French State had to put in safety the cavity, to preserve the balance of the internal climate and to provide the facilities that would allow research to be conducted.

The Chauvet-Pont d'Arc cave has been the subject of research by a multidisciplinary team since 1998.

This, like any activity conducted in the cave, is conditioned by its conservation: this constitutes an essential prerequisite and specific to the Chauvet cave, envied by the managers of many other cavities.

In 2000, since most of the measures had been put in place under the aegis of the DRAC, the Ministry of Culture created the Chauvet Cave conservation service in order to continue the verification and preservation of the internal balance.

The missions of the service

The main tasks of this DRAC service are to:

• supervise the climatological and bacteriological monitoring carried out by specialized laboratories;
• to supervise the maintenance and maintenance work of the cave, exterior and interior;
• ensure the coordination of all actors who enter the cave to carry out research, maintenance, maintenance, reporting etc.)

Photography of areas likely to change (for example, walls covered by seepage) is taken over by the service.

Since its World Heritage designation on 22 June 2014 and the opening in 2015 of the Chauvet2 Cave (selective facsimile of the cave) generating an influx of visitors to the region, the obligation of surveillance has progressed by a notch.

Among other very important tasks of the service is the archiving of data relating to the life of the cave, its condition and all the activities taking place there.

It is essential to build an archive of all these events: to keep a record of them, and to be able to refer to them if necessary. In this sense, the service is working on the development of a Geographic Information System, a real geo-referenced database, which will be based on a complete 3D survey also being produced.

The Chauvet Cave Conservation Service Team
To varying degrees, the officers of the service all have the essential mission of ensuring the safety of the cave, the surveillance of its health status as well as the safety of the persons authorized to enter the cavity: welcome and supervision of the laboratories in charge of monitoring the balance of the internal climate, the companies of maintenance and maintenance of the cavity and its surroundings, the team of researchers, the media and the rare visitors.

The team consists of

Marie-Blanche Potte, curator of the Chauvet cave, head of the conservation department of the cave, deputy regional curator of Historical Monuments.

Its role consists, for the most part, of initiating and coordinating actions for the conservation of the cave as well as interventions in terms of works and maintenance,in close collaboration with the Regional Archaeological Service for the harmonization of research work with the conservation of the cave.

Other actions are carried out with the National Centre of Prehistory (CNP) in order to create an accessible archive (meeting of iconographic collections).

Catalogue of the Chauvet cave image fonds  available from NOC

In terms of valorization, the Head of Conservation ensures the holding of communications with large audiences including that of schools and colleges, and develops with the Chauvet2 Cave common actions of communication.

of conservation assistants
In addition to their missions related to the safety and maintenance of the cavity, and the safety of people, they actively participate in the valorization of the cave through the transmission of scientific knowledge in the school and associative environment.
They are particularly responsible for setting up and feeding the Geographical Information System, monitoring technical installations and taking photographs..

an assistant in charge of monitoring the ornate caves of the Ardèche Its first mission is to monitor the safety and health of the ornate caves of the southern Ardèche. He then constitutes a member of the Conservation team for the missions related to the safety and maintenance of the cavity, and the safety of people. It also contributes to the enhancement of the cave by the transmission of scientific knowledge in the associative environment.