In the land of the temple caves Notes on art and the human spirit
(Book)

Includes bibliographical references (p. 197-200)

"Frederick Turner set out to explore the role of art and human expression in what has quickly become known as the age of terrorism. His quest affirmed that it is still as undeniably necessary as air. In the Land of Temple Caves travels back to the very beginning of Art to assess anew its meanings in the long human story. Turner makes a personal investigation of sanctuaries in France and Spain that the great mythographer Joseph Campbell called the "temple caves," the earliest known of which contains paintings and engravings more than 32,000 years old, works of art more advanced than the hunting implements by which their creators lived. Turner starts his journey in St. Emilion at the gateway to the country of the caves and ends it in Paris's St. Sulpice. And in the caves and prehistoric shelters, along the valleys tracing the mighty rivers of the Ice Age, in a war-ravaged village, and in a city church far removed from the country of the caves, Turner finds resonant meaning in what he has always believed to be true. In this travelogue that puts France's land of temple caves and the inviting life above them on a timeless map, it becomes increasingly, movingly clear: Art does matter - vitally - and never more than now."--BOOK JACKET

Table of contents available online