Jean Clottes, an eminent French prehistorian, is currently President of l'IFRAO (International Federation of Rock Art Organizations), a group of 43 associations worldwide, Consultant to (and former Chairman of) the UNESCO International Committee for Rock Art, and President of the Commission on Rock Art of the UISPP (International Union of Pre- and Protohistoric Sciences). Beginning in 1998, he headed the research team that explored, studied and published La Grotte Chauvet, the famous Paleolithic cave in the Ardeche Valley of south-central France , with spectacular art dating to a staggering 30,000 years ago--late Aurignacian, some of the oldest known representational art in the world. Dr. Clottes has also studied the now-underwater cave of Cosquer , off the Mediterranean coast near Marseilles , where artists worked in two different periods (Gravettian & Solutrean), some 27,000 & 18,000 years ago. He has excavated many major archeological sites, mainly in his native French Pyrenees, where he was Director for Prehistoric Antiquities for many years. Dr. Clottes, until his official “retirement”, was also Inspector General and Scientific Adviser on Rock Art for the French Ministry of Culture. At different times he was President of both the French and Pyrenean Prehistoric Societies. Among his many honors are the Légion d' Honneur, the Palmes Académiques, the Ordre National de Mérite, and the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres — all of the French Government.

Dr. Clottes is the author of numerous influential books (notably on Chauvet, Cosquer, Niaux, and La Vache caves) and articles on Upper Paleolithic art and archaeology and is known for his espousal of the shamanistic explanation for cave art. He is general editor of a massive, superbly illustrated series of monographs on rock art in France, Spain & Africa, published by Seuil in Paris . He is also the Founding Editor of the International Newsletter on Rock Art. A former English teacher, Dr. Clottes is a very lively & engaging speaker.

Specialized Seminar: "The Rock Art of
Chauvet Cave, France"
*Friday, September 21, 2007, Hibben Center , Room 105,
12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m.*

Both events are free, open to the public & wheelchair-accessible. The venues are on Redondo Rd. , just east of University Blvd., between Martin Luther King Dr. & Roma on the University of New Mexico campus.

Sponsored by the Journal of Anthropological Research, Dr. Clottes' lecture & talk are in conjunction with the National Park Service's workshop, “Set in Stone: Binational Workshop on Petroglyph Management in the United States and Mexico.” Petroglyph National Monument , along with partners, University of New Mexico, and Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, will present this workshop September 19–21, 2007.

For further information regarding the conference, please contact (505) 277-1370, petr_superintendent@nps.gov or visit the Set in Stone Workshop website at http://www.nps.gov/petr/workshop.htm