"The Kowalczewskis knew they’d found something extraordinary, and contacted archaeologist Francois Rouzaud, who, by carbon dating a burnt bear bone, suggested that the site was around 47,600 years old — so old that it was pushing the limits of carbon dating, which is only accurate up to 50,000 years. The rings they had discovered, one writer suggested, may have served as a map to the stars. But this age of revelations ended quickly, for in April 1999, while guiding colleagues through a nearby karstic network, Rouzaud had a heart attack and died. And with that, inquiry into the Bruniquel Cave came to an abrupt halt."