Lascaux: The Axial Gallery: Falling Cow

The drawing above depicts the next section of the Axial Gallery, and shows the location of some more symbols that I have deciphered. This section is known as the Panel of the Falling Cow.

The cow is actually a female aurochs. She is big and powerful, but her body is twisting as if being pulled into a vortex. She is seen again in the photograph below.

It is not clear from the photograph, but Norbert Aujoulat describes the main colour of the cow as mauve. The colour mauve or purple is associated with bruising. It means that you may get hurt. The Chinese character zǐ 紫 for purple is a composite of the characters for silk, stop, and turn around.

On the cow’s flank is a red rectangular shape. It may represent the character wéi 囗, meaning enclosure, and be colour coded red for danger. In other words, the cow is trapped in a dangerous place.

Adjacent to the cow’s mouth is the second warning. The symbols are:

wéi 囗, meaning enclosure;

hàn 厂, meaning cliff;

gǔn丨, meaning downward movement or drop, and;

gǔn丨, meaning downward movement or drop.

So the cow appears to be telling us that she is trapped, and likens the experience to falling off a cliff, and falling straight down. Could she be talking about the gravitational pull of a black hole?

Next: What happens to a light source as it gets closer to a black hole?

Image Credits:

Positioning of the figures on the panel of the Falling Cow: Norbert Aujoulat © MCC-CNP, 2004: Lascaux, le geste, l’espace et le temps, Paris, Le Seuil: http://www.american-buddha.com/lascaux.5d.htm

La Vache qui tombe. Paroi Droite. Diverticule Axial: Norbert Aujoulat © MCC-CNP, 2004: Lascaux, le geste, l’espace et le temps, Paris, Le Seuil: Lascaux: Visite de la Grotte: Ministry of Culture, France: http://www.lascaux.culture.fr/#/fr/mediatheque.xml/41