As I embark on a self-directed course of study in art history, the natural place to begin is the Stone Age. Paintings from the Paleolithic era are more impressive than I remembered. Looking at ancient artwork (and reading ancient history for that matter), I’m struck more by the continuity between us moderns and those distant ancestors than any of the (seemingly great, but really quite superficial) differences. These paintings from the Lascaux Cave in France are particularly striking (Wikipedia).