Cueva de Ardales

The main articles are:

• History of Spain
• Neanderthal men

2022

The exploration of a cave in southern Spain, known throughout the world for ancient rock painting, brought many surprises. The key conclusion of scientists: being "ornate" it was not used for life. What was it? Paleolithic Museum, Gallery or... temple?

In 2022, scientists completed the first detailed study of the Cueva de Ardales cave.

The cave was discovered more than 200 years ago, but excavations were not carried out in it until recently. Therefore, scientists still did not know how exactly the cave was used, whether ancient people lived in it, and most importantly, how long ago ancient artists began to paint on its walls.

The new study presents the results of the first excavations in this cave and the first radioisotope dating of artifacts found in it. And they amaze the imagination of modern man.

The most important discovery made by an international group of scientists: most likely, the first "visitors" to this cave were Neanderthals, who found themselves here about 65 thousand years ago.

They left in Cueva de Ardales evidence of "symbolic practices" and a number of instruments used for them, such as pieces of ochre (to which drawings were applied to walls).

The oldest rock drawing in the cave consists of abstract signs such as dots, fingerprints and hands, and later works of art are already figurative paintings such as animal images.

More than 50 radiometric dates confirm the exceptional antiquity of Paleolithic art in Cueva de Ardales: the first drawings in the cave appeared more than 58,000 years ago! And, if later these data are confirmed, it will be the oldest cave painting.

Modern humans arrived later, about 35,000 years ago, and used the cave from time to time until the beginning of the Copper Age (about seven thousand years ago) mainly as a burial place for the deceased.

It turns out that the cave was used first by Neanderthals, and then by people, in total about 50 thousand years in a row.

At the same time, there is almost no evidence of human economic activity in Cueva de Ardales: this suggests that people did not live in the cave, but used it exclusively as a "sacred place."

Most likely, the ancient people lived in an open-air parking lot located only one hundred meters down the slope from the entrance to the cave.

More than 400 stone objects were found in the 360 m2 parking lot known as Kukarra. The vast majority of these artifacts belong to the Middle Paleolithic. This period ended about 40,000 years ago.

The researchers also drew attention to traces of charcoal found at the top of the stalagmite in the cave. At a height of about a meter, a depression was made in it.

Archaeologists believe that stalagmite was used as a stone "lamp" in which a torch was installed.

Radioisotope analysis of coal showed its approximate age: about 11,300 years.

Researchers have discovered several such "lanterns" in a cave, which in ancient times almost did not get sunlight. Apparently, ancient people equipped artificial lighting in the cave.

The last time, according to scientists, the torch lit up in this cave about 4,600 years ago.

The results confirm the importance of Cueva de Ardales as a place with high symbolic value, scientists write.

This place tells an incredible story of human activity in Spain, the authors of the new work emphasize.

Along with other similar sites - the region has more than 30 other caves with similar drawings - Cueva de Ardales makes the Iberian Peninsula a key site for exploring the ancient history of European culture.

The study was published in the scientific journal PLoS ONE.