The Rouffignac cave was mentioned in 1575 by François de Belleforest. In his Cosmographie universelle he cites “paintings and animal traces”. In the 19th century the cave was known as a tourist attraction. Famous archeologists such as Henri Breuil, André Glory and Édouard-Alfred Martel had visited the cave in the early 20th century, but it was only in 1956 that Louis-René Nougier and Romain Robert, two prehistorians from the Pyrenees, rediscovered and confirmed the cave art.[1] During the Second World War the cave served as a hide-out for the French Résistance. In 1959 the cave was officially opened for visitors. In his editorial in 'Antiquity' December 1958 (reproduced in 'Writing for Antiquity'..Thames and Hudson ) Glyn Daniel mentions the then disputed authenticity of the paintings at Rouffignac.He compares the dispute to the Glozel forgeries and the Piltdown man which authenticities were initially endorsed by many archaeologists. He notes that Martel spent eighteen hours in the caves in 1893 and saw nothing, and the four members of Cambridge University Speleologic Society who visited Rouffignac in 1939 and saw nothing. He further quotes O G S Crawford, previous editor of 'Antiquity' who asserted that 'those who believe in their authenticity have been the victims of a hoax'.