Lascaux cave paintings discovered
Near Montignac, France, a collection of prehistoric cave paintings are discovered by four teenagers who stumbled upon the ancient artwork after following their dog down a narrow entrance into a cavern. The 15,000- to 17,000-year-old paintings, consisting mostly of animal representations, are among the finest examples of art from the Upper Paleolithic period.
First studied by the French archaeologist Henri-Édouard-Prosper Breuil, the Lascaux grotto consists of a main cavern 66 feet wide and 16 feet high. The walls of the cavern are decorated with some 600 painted and drawn animals and symbols and nearly 1,500 engravings. The pictures depict in excellent detail numerous types of animals, including horses, red deer, stags, bovines, felines, and what appear to be mythical creatures. There is only one human figure depicted in the cave: a bird-headed man with an erect phallus. Archaeologists believe that the cave was used over a long period of time as a center for hunting and religious rites.
The Lascaux grotto was opened to the public in 1948 but was closed in 1963 because artificial lights had faded the vivid colors of the paintings and caused algae to grow over some of them. A replica of the Lascaux cave was opened nearby in 1983 and receives tens of thousands of visitors annually.
INVENTIONS & SCIENCE
1993
New floating bridge opens in Seattle; I-90 stretches from coast to coast
On September 12, 1993, the rebuilt Lacey V. Murrow Bridge over Lake Washington opens in Seattle. The new bridge, which was actually the eastbound lanes of Interstate 90 (the westbound lanes cross the lake on a separate bridge), connects the city and its eastern suburbs.
RUSSIA
1953
Nikita Khrushchev elected Soviet leader
Six months after the death of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin, Nikita Khrushchev succeeds him with his election as first secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. Born into a Ukrainian peasant family in 1894, Khrushchev worked as a mine mechanic before joining the Soviet Union.
BLACK HISTORY
1974
Violence erupts in Boston over desegregation busing
In Boston, Massachusetts, opposition to court-ordered school “busing” turns violent on the opening day of classes. School buses carrying African American children were pelted with eggs, bricks, and bottles, and police in combat gear fought to control angry white protesters.
WORLD WAR II
1942
The Laconia is sunk
A German U-boat sinks a British troop ship, the Laconia, killing more than 1,400 men on September 12, 1942. The commander of the German sub, Capt. Werner Hartenstein, realizing that Italians POWs were among the passengers.
SPORTS
1951
Sugar Ray Robinson wins back belt
On September 12, 1951, former middleweight champion Sugar Ray Robinson defeats Randy Turpin to win back the belt in front of 61,370 spectators at the Polo Grounds in New York City. Robinson, a New York City native.
U.S. PRESIDENTS
1953
John F. Kennedy marries Jacqueline Bouvier in Newport, Rhode Island
Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy, the future 35th president of the United States, marries Jacqueline Bouvier in Newport, Rhode Island on September 12, 1953. Seven years later, the couple would become the youngest president and first lady in American history.
ART, LITERATURE, AND FILM HISTORY
1972
Hopalong Cassidy rides off into his last sunset
After nearly 40 years of riding across millions of American TV and movie screens, the cowboy actor William Boyd, best known for his role as Hopalong Cassidy, dies on September 12, 1972 at the age of 77.
ART, LITERATURE, AND FILM HISTORY
1944
Singer-songwriter Barry White is born
Born in Galveston, Texas, on September 12, 1944, Barry White—or “the Maestro”—went on to stunningly successful career as a pop singer that spanned five decades, and made him a star of the disco era. Having written several new songs and recorded his vocals for demo purposes only.
ART, LITERATURE, AND FILM HISTORY
1846
Poets Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning elope
Elizabeth Barrett elopes with Robert Browing on September 12, 1846. Barrett was already a respected poet who had published literary criticism and Greek translations in addition to poetry. Her first volume of poetry, The Seraphim and Other Poems, appeared in 1838.
ART, LITERATURE, AND FILM HISTORY
2004
First season of “Entourage”—a TV show about life in Hollywood—comes to an end
On September 12, 2004, the first season of the television comedy series Entourage, about a hot young actor in Hollywood and the posse of people surrounding him, comes to an end on HBO. Entourage, which debuted on July 18, 2004, starred Adrian Grenier as the up-and-coming movie.
NATURAL DISASTERS & ENVIRONMENT
1988
Hurricane Gilbert slams Jamaica
Hurricane Gilbert slams into Jamaica, killing hundreds of people, on September 12, 1988. The storm went on to cause death and destruction in Mexico and spur a batch of tornadoes in Texas. On September 10, Gilbert attained hurricane status west of the Dominican Republic.
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