The animals people in the Upper Paleolithic used in their paintings were apparently chosen on account of the period they were living in. Animals such as red deer and reindeer were apparently predominant in colder eras whereas horses and bison were more frequently portrayed in warmer periods (Mithen 672). Art was most probably adapted to the circumstance people found themselves in at the time when they put across their artistic talents.

The Lascaux painting showing a falling man facing a wounded bison and what appears to be a dart next piercing through the bison is intriguing through the detail used in it. Although the man is poorly drawn (as most human characters in cave paintings), the audience is marked by the prehistoric episode for the great intensity that it expresses.

In spite of the fact that everyone would expect the animal to appear more interested in physically harming the human, it turns its head, seemingly indifferent to the man and to virtually everything happening around it. The bird most probably represents a totem people used during the period, making a reference to their spiritual character and to how it assisted a human being in his or her difficult moments.

The bird on the stick can also be considered to be an instrument meant to facilitate a better usage of spears, as one could use it with the purpose of throwing spears with better precision and faster. Considering that the throwing instrument was shaped like a bird, it can be associated with the efficiency the darts had, as they likely flew across the aire and met their destination with accuracy.

In spite of the fact that the bison is visibly wounded (his internal organs hang from its belly), it is not obvious...

There are numerous ways in which one can interpret the painting, as the organs resemble a sort of symbol or a trap that does not allow it to move further.
Although the drawing appears to be simplistic at the first glance, matters tend to change consequent to further examination. It is not even certain if the man present in the picture is an actual man, taking into account that he has a bird's head instead of a normal one. If the man in the painting is not an actual man, it is very probable that the bison is also a mere symbol of something else.

The cave painting containing a variety of animals such as horses, bison, and what seems to be a deer, all running across a plain portrays great complexity. The horses in particular are notable because they are present in a variety of shapes and species in the drawing. One can identify ponies, equines, and even dotted horses in the painting. The ancient representation of what was probably a real-life episode can serve as guidance for scholars studying the horse and its ancestors.

Works cited:

1. Lyons Joseph, "Paleolithic Aesthetics: The Psychology of Cave Art," The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, Vol. 26, No. 1, pp. 107-114, (Autumn, 1967).

2. Mithen, Steven J. "To Hunt or to Paint: Animals and Art in the Upper Palaeolithic," Man New Series, Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 671-695, (Dec., 1988).

3. White, Randall, "Beyond Art: Toward an Understanding of the Origins of Material Representation in Europe" Annual Review of Anthropology, Vol. 21, pp. 537-564, (1992).