[Virginia-American]

[relation between coition and pregnancy]

Heavens to Betsy, BB, it was an honest question.

Here's The Straight Dope discussing it.

[Is the Lascaux figure a shaman?]

Discussion by Leakey of shaman interpretations

Last sentence:

The place is imbued with meaning, but we can't decipher what is being said. The potency is palpable, but we are culturally blind to its content. In seeking to understand our origins, we come away from a place like Lascaux with a deep conviction of connectedness, and a humility at the power of the human mind....

Another discussion

Google Lascaux and shaman for more.

[betty boop]

The place is imbued with meaning, but we can't decipher what is being said. The potency is palpable, but we are culturally blind to its content. In seeking to understand our origins, we come away from a place like Lascaux with a deep conviction of connectedness, and a humility at the power of the human mind....

Leakey, of course, is entitled to his evaluation of the accessibility of the "content" of Lascaux. Frankly, I don't think "cultural blindness" makes an understanding of its meaning impossible. What most impresses me about Lascaux is its ability to effectively communicate with people living so many millennia later: The artist speaks to me in a language I can understand.

I certainly wholly agree with Leakey's last sentence: "In seeking to understand our origins, we come away from a place like Lascaux with a deep conviction of connectedness, and a humility at the power of the human mind...." Thanks for writing, Virginia-American!