Cosquer Cave
cross section with entrance tunnel and current sea level
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 Location in France
Location in France
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| Location | Calanque de Morgiou in Marseille |
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| Region | Midi, France |
| Coordinates | 43°12′10″N 5°26′57″E / 43.20278°N 5.44917°ECoordinates: 43°12′10″N 5°26′57″E / 43.20278°N 5.44917°E |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1991, |
| Archaeologists | Henri Cosquer |
The Cosquer cave is located in the Calanque de Morgiou in Marseille, France, near Cap Morgiou. The entrance to the cave is located 37 m (121 ft) underwater, due to the Holocene sea level rise. It was discovered in 1985 by and named after diver Henri Cosquer, but its existence was not made public until 1991, when three divers became lost in the cave and died.
The cave can now be accessed by divers through a 175 m (574 ft) long tunnel, the entrance of which is located 37 m (121 ft) below sea level, that had risen after the cave was inhabited. During the glacial periods of the , the shore of the Mediterranean sea was situated several kilometers to the South and the sea level up to 100 m (330 ft) below the cave entry.
Four fifths of the cave, including any cave wall art, were permanently or periodically submerged and destroyed by sea water as 150 instances of cave art remain. including several dozen painting and carvings dating back to the Upper Paleolithic, corresponding to two different phases of occupation of the cave:
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