Archaeologists Find 16,800-Year-Old Cave Dwelling That Is ‘One of the Best’

Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of a cave dwelling that was constructed around 16,800 years ago by prehistoric humans.

The dwelling was found in the La Garma cave complex in the autonomous community of Cantabria, northern Spain, the local government announced in a statement.

The new discovery is “one of the best preserved Paleolithic dwellings” in the world, according to the Government of Cantabria. The Paleolithic, also referred to as the Old Stone Age, is a period in human prehistory that extends from the earliest use of stone tools more than 3 million years ago to around 12,000 years ago.

La Garma is a “unique” archaeological site that boasts an impressive collection of rock art and Paleolithic remains, including thousands of fossils, according to the World Monuments Fund. The complex forms part of a world-renowned network of caves in northern Spain that are listed together as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This listing includes the famous Cave of Altamira in Cantabria that features striking prehistoric cave art dating as far back as around 35,000 years ago.

To date, five levels of caves have been discovered at La Garma, which preserves evidence of human activity spanning over 300,000 years, right up until the Middle Ages. The original entrance to the cave’s Lower Gallery was blocked by a landslide around 16,000 years ago, preserving the ancient remains inside intact, turning it into a kind of prehistoric “time capsule,” according to the local government.

The latest discovery at La Garma is the prehistoric dwelling from 16,800 years ago, which occupies an oval space of almost 54 square feet. The dwelling is delimited by an alignment of stone blocks and stalagmites that supported a structure of sticks and skins leaning against a ledge of the cave wall.

In the center of the dwelling, the researchers found evidence of a small bonfire, around which lie several remains left behind by the hunter-gatherers who lived there. These include antler and bone instruments, as well as evidence of fur working and stone tool production.

In total, the archaeologists documented more than 4,600 objects during their investigations, primarily the bones of deer, horses and bison, but also pieces of flint, needles and a porto-harpoon, as well as shells of marine mollusks.

They also found decorated bones, among them, a spectacular pierced bone of an aurochs—an extinct giant cattle species—with an engraved representation of that animal, as well as several pendants that the residents of the dwelling may have worn.