Human bones from the Early Neolithic period discovered in Spain's Sierra de
Atapuerca cave system's Galera del Slex cave have been studied again by
researchers at the Universidad de Alcala.
The team describes their examination of the location, fossils, and context
of the remains in an article titled "Early Neolithic human remains from
Galera del Slex in Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain" that was published in
Quaternary Science Reviews. This investigation was done to piece together
the history of the people who were discovered there.
For thousands of years, people have used the Galera del Slex cave. Numerous
human and animal bones, 53 panels of engravings and red and black cave
paintings, hundreds of fire hearth ruins, and pieces of ceramic vessels may
all be found in the cave.
The cave entrance was shut just as the Bronze Age was coming to a close,
producing a time capsule that survived until its discovery in 1972. Over
time, a more nuanced image began to emerge, but at first the objects and
bones were all assumed to date from the Bronze Age.
In the decades after discovery, 2,700 human remains were gathered from
various cave regions. In addition, several hearths, the remnants of torches
that were placed in strategic locations, more than 6,000 ceramic fragments
(at least 336 containers), tools, flint, an axe that had been polished, and
341 animal bones, mostly rabbits, were also discovered.
The bones of five people were found in the cave's two deep chasms, Sima A
and Sima B.
Sima B
Three people are found in Sima B's vertical shaft, and the positioning and
surroundings of the remains imply purposeful placement. One person (I-1) is
discovered to have all of the skeleton remains present, showing that it was
thrown into the abyss just after passing away.
The others might have been moved from another area to the shaft because
they are not as complete. The authors note that using the pictures of the
original excavation to rebuild this site presents significant
challenges.
Sima A
From the depths of Sima A, two people and six pottery items that were
subsequently dated to the Early Neolithic were found. The two people were
once thought to be a tragic pair of Bronze Age cave explorers who became
disoriented and fell down the 15-meter-deep crevice of the Sima A features.
Neolithic pottery, on the other hand, point to an older, deliberate
location. According to the authors, this intention is consistent with the
custom of 5,000–6,000 years ago, when pottery vessels were frequently left
as funeral offerings in Neolithic cemeteries.
According to forensic analysis, one of the people (I-5) was a female who
was 13 years old when she passed away. Her full and assembled bones were
discovered resting against the far wall of the chasm floor, next to the six
porcelain urns.
The other bones (I-4) were of an adult guy who was found face down and
without the lower part of his skeleton, indicating that he may have been a
more unfortunate explorer than the others.
Three of the remains—one from the young girl (I-5) of Sima A and two from
Sima B—have undergone radiocarbon dating, which dates them to the latter
half of the 6th millennium BCE, or more than 7,000 years ago, making them
some of the oldest Neolithic human remains ever discovered in the interior
of the Iberian Peninsula. It is by more than 1,000 years the earliest
Neolithic funeral site in the instance of the 13-year-old girl.
It's interesting to note that individual I-4 of the Sima A funeral site is
significantly more modern, dating to little over 4,000 years old. This is
consistent with the first excavation interpretation of a Bronze Age
spelunker who ran into some terrible luck.
