Outstanding cave paintings and rock art you have to see -

The expression of emotions through art is as old as human civilization itself. These cave paintings depict the life, thoughts, and creativity of people living thousands of years ago. Click to know more.

© Shutterstock

France -

The bold and striking paintings of large animals in the Lascaux cave complex near Montignac are estimated to be around 17,000-years-old.

© Public Domain

Brazil -

A remarkably detailed cave painting hidden away under the landscape of the Serra da Capivara National Park.

© Shutterstock

Brazil -

Serra da Capivara's Pedra Furada and Sítio do Meio are the best-known sites. This painting is considered the symbol of the park.

© Shutterstock

Spain -

The Paleolithic art found in Altamira Cave in Cantabria is breathtaking in its beauty.

© Getty Images

Spain -

Bison are depicted in rich color in the great hall of polychromes at Altamira Cave. They were painted around 20,000 years ago.

© Getty Images

Indonesia - The oldest known figurative painting, a depiction of a bull, was discovered in the Lubang Jeriji Saléh Cave in Borneo. It's dated as being over 40,000-years-old.

© Public Domain

Somaliland -

The stunning cave paintings at the Laas Geel complex in northern Somaliland are among the earliest known cave paintings in the Horn of Africa.

© Getty Images

Somaliland -

The Laas Geel cave paintings are also the most vivid rock art discovered in Africa to date.

© Getty Images

Bulgaria - Delve into Magura Cave and gaze upon some truly expressive and highly significant European post-Paleolithic cave art.

© Public Domain

Chad -

Incredible Saharan rock art dated back to at least 12,000 years can be admired at the remote Manda Guéli Cave in the Ennedi Mountains, located in northeastern Chad. 

© Getty Images

Argentina -

The art in Cueva de las Manos, located in Perito Moreno, dates back 9,000 to 13,000 years ago.

© Shutterstock

France -

This artistic depiction of a group of rhinoceros in the Chauvet Cave in Ardèche was completed 30,000 to 32,000 years ago.

© Getty Images

France -

The more than 1,000 paintings at Chauvet Cave are unmatched in their sophistication.

© Getty Images

France -

Depictions of predators at Chauvet include this hyena.

© Getty Images

Egypt -

The rock paintings from the Cave of Beasts in the Western Desert are estimated to be 7,000-years-old.

© Getty Images

India -

Some of the prehistoric paintings found in the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh are about 30,000 years old. They are the oldest known rock art in the Indian subcontinent!

© Getty Images

Algeria -

Tassili n'Ajjer—a national park—has some of the most significant groupings of prehistoric cave art in the world.

© Getty Images

Algeria -

Set on a vast plateau, the entire rock formation is an archaeological site.

© Getty Images

Algeria -

The earliest pieces of art are estimated to be 12,000-years-old, and number around 15,000 engravings.

© Getty Images

Australia -

A koala bear as depicted in Aboriginal rock art at Anbangbang Rock Shelter in Kakadu National Park in Australia’s Northern Territory.

© Getty Images

USA -

Native American Chumash art on the walls of Painted Cave in the mountains above Santa Barbara, California.

© Getty Images

Egypt -

So named for the depictions created 10,000 years ago of people with their limbs bent as if they were swimming, the Cave of the Swimmers, located on Gilf Kebir near the border with Libya, was once surrounded by a greener and far wetter Sahara Desert.

© Getty Images

Malaysia -

The 3,000-years-old artistic Neolithic cave wall paintings seen at Gua Tambun in Ipoh, Perak state are today acknowledged as part of Malaysia's national heritage.

© Shutterstock

Australia -

Found in the northwest Kimberley region of Western Australia, the highly ornate Bradshaw rock paintings are likely Aboriginal in origin.

© Getty Images

South Africa -

Rock art in the Western Cape painted by the indigenous San people.

© Shutterstock

Libya - The ancient rock art found at Tadrart Acacus (Acacus Mountains) depicts wonderful paintings and carvings of various animals and men dating back to the late Upper Paleolithic period.

© Public Domain

Libya -

Sadly, reports suggest this important rock art is being systematically destroyed by vandals with sledgehammers and scrub brushes.

© Getty Images

Botswana -

The Tsodilo Hills in northwest Botswana contain nearly 500 individual sites representing thousands of years of human habitation. Some of the paintings here are dated back to 24,000 years ago.

© Getty Images

India - The pictorial writings engraved on the walls of the Edakkal Caves date back to the Neolithic period. These rare carvings are the only known examples from South India.

© Public Domain

Spain -

A prehistoric cave painting of animals at Albarracín, one of Spain's most picturesque towns.

See also: Europe's most fascinating megalithic monuments

© Getty Images