**Ekain cave** ::cuevas 
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The Ekain Cave, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008, is one of the great sanctuaries of Magdalenian Paleolithic rock art, comparable to masterpieces such as Altamira, Lascaux or Niaux. Located on the eastern slope of Mount Ekain, within the municipality of Deba and only 1.5 km from the town center of Zestoa, it sits in a privileged setting between the streams of Goltzibar and Beliosoerreka. Discovered in 1969 by members of the Antxieta group, its narrow original entrance helped preserve an exceptional artistic ensemble: 70 figures including paintings and engravings. The horse is the absolute protagonist, and its equine compositions, spread across panels of outstanding technical and aesthetic quality, are considered the finest wall ensemble of their kind in all Franco-Cantabrian art.
Alongside the numerous horses, Ekain contains other animal depictions: a single hind, two bison and a small goat, as well as scattered lines and signs, all executed in deep blacks, reds and ochres with remarkable skill. The technical variety, with silhouettes, flat tints, engravings and bichromes, together with its excellent state of preservation, makes its galleries (Erdibide, Auntzei, Erdialde, Zaldei, Artzei and Azkenzaldei) a unique journey into the artistic sensitivity of the Paleolithic groups that inhabited the valley. Beyond the beauty of its representations, Ekain reflects an ideal environment for prehistoric life and hunting, standing as an exceptional testimony to the symbolic capacity of Homo sapiens in southwestern Europe. Although the cave remains closed for conservation reasons, the Ekainberri replica allows visitors to experience with great fidelity one of the most important treasures of European rock art.
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