"Stunning" cave etchings discovered in Spain's Basque region

The Deputy General of the Basque region of Bizkaia in northern Spain has announced the discovery of a series of "stunning" cave etchings in a cave in the middle of the town of Lekeitio on the north coast of Spain.

At the official presentation of the discovery on Thursday, Unai Rementeria highlighted that the etchings, which are thought to date back 14,000 years are "according to experts the collection of paintings which is the most spectacular in the Iberian Peninsula."

The 50 etchings of animals scratched into the rock were discovered in a cave known as Armintxe in the middle of the fishing town of just over 7,000 inhabitants.

So far the figures of 18 horses, five mountain goats, two bison and at least four lions have been discovered, along with some animals still to be identified.

Rementeria had revealed the discovery on Wednesday, but refused to reveal details, such as where the discovery was, until Thursday's official presentation.

Experts have highlighted the "spectacular" composition and technique used in making the figures, some of which are larger than usual for figures from this period.

This discovery came just months after a "sanctuary" of around 70 paintings of different animals dating back to the upper Paleolithic period around 14,500-12,500 years ago was discovered in May in the cave of "Atxurra", around 30 km away from the city of Bilbao.

Bizkaia neighbors the region of Cantabria, which is home to the famous cave paintings of "Altamira" dating back to between 18,000-14,000 years ago. Endit