Prehisto Park, Tursac; Dordogne; a park depicting life for prehistoric man

Visit The Prehisto Park

The Prehisto Park is situated at Tursac in the heart of the Vezere Valley. The Prehisto Park is a park which aims to recreate scenes from life as it would have been lived by prehistoric man.

Explore the Prehisto Parc

The Prehisto Park at Tursac in the central Dordogne area is situated in a pleasant wooded valley which is very likely the kind of area that prehistoric man would have chosen for a settlement.

A circular walk around the valley leads you past a number of scenes that have been created to represent aspects of prehistoric life. For example there is a hunting scene where a group of prehistoric hunters bring down a wooly mammoth, another where they are attacking a cave lion and one where they are carving up a deer.

There are also various scenes of life at the settlement with family members involved in various different activities.

Some of the displays also have an audio element - for example you can hear a lion roaring at the scene with the lion.

As you walk around the park the scenes progress from ones depicting neanderthal man to scenes depicting our direct ancestors - Cro-Magnon man.

In a Magdalenian-style hut there is a video film showing the evolution of man. Note that the Magdalenian era is named after the nearby site of La Madeleine where an important prehistoric shelter was found filled with many important items that helped to further our understanding of this period of history.

The creation of the park was supervised by Professor John Louis Heim, a professor of fossil anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris and so the scenarious depicted are all historically correct.

Information panels are scattered throughout the park providing further information about the animals or activities represented.

The models are a little old-fashioned and a little tired but if you have young children and want to give them an easy introduction into life in prehistoric times then it is a useful visit to make. New for 2017 there are "The Prehisto-Games" where, using an illustrated booklet, children can solve prehistoric puzzles throughout the park.

During the school holidays there are a number of themed activities for children including making fire and sharpening flint for tools and weapons.

On site there is a snack-bar, a picnic area and a small shop.