[9] Altamira has been characterized as an L-type asteroid by Pan-STARRS photometric survey,[8] which agrees with the overall spectral type for members of the Henan family.
[10]: 23 In January 2014, a rotational lightcurve of Altamira was obtained from photometric observation by astronomers at the Palomar Transient Factory in California.
Lightcurve analysis gave a short rotation period of 2.7 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.11 magnitude (U=2).
[6] This minor planet was named after the famous Cave of Altamira, located in northern Spain.
Discovered in 1879, its prehistoric cave paintings feature drawings of wild bison, deer, horses and boar, as well as handprints of the artists who created them.