“World Class Discovery”
Sealed for thousands of years – researchers discover gigantic cave
In south-east Spain, researchers have discovered scratch marks on the walls of a previously unknown cave. They are probably around 28,000 years old.
von
Benedict Hollenstein
Fee Anabelle Riebeling
updated
Archaeologists have made a spectacular discovery in Spain.
University of Murcia
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In southeastern Spain, researchers have found a cave that has been sealed for thousands of years.
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It not only impresses with its enormous size, but also with scratch marks on the walls.
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Archaeologists suspect that they come from cave bears that have been extinct for around 27,500 years.
It started in 2021 with a small rock hole through which archaeologists working near the city of Murcia in southeastern Spain felt a draft. The area is known for the cave complex Cueva del Arco (see box). As they dig, they set regarding enlarging the hole, expecting to find a smaller cavity behind the hole. But no one expected the discovery they made following a tedious journey through the small entrance.
The researchers had to wait a long time for the cave to open. Because as early as 2018 they were on a cavity filled with sediment, which seemed like “a passage to a larger cave”. The fact that they were right in their assumption was only finally confirmed in 2022. Because of the Covid 19 pandemic, they had to interrupt their work for the time being.
The Cueva del Arco cave system looks spectacular from the outside.
Screenshot Tv.um.es/Universität Murcia
It is a collection of caves concentrated around a large natural rock arch in the Almadenes Gorge near the Spanish town of Cieza.
Jaume I University in Castello
Actually, the Cueva del Arco complex is considered relatively well researched.
University of Murcia
But now researchers from the Universities of Murcia and Jaume I have discovered a previously unknown cave in Castelló that stretches over 1.6 kilometers. To get there, the researchers had to squeeze through narrow passages.
University of Murcia
“We were faced with a world-class discovery,” said the team led by Martín Lerma and Didac Románin in a statement.
Jaume I University in Castello
The chambers that have been hidden for so long are huge: “Some are 20 meters high and thus the highest in the region.”
Screenshot Tv.um.es/Universität Murcia
The stalactites are “just as unrivaled” with a length of three prayers and a centimeter in diameter. This means that, thanks to the isolation of the cave, they had grown under almost unchanged conditions for many millennia.
Screenshot Tv.um.es/Universität Murcia
But that was not all: the researchers discovered the traces of bear claws on the walls. These might lead to the prehistory of Spain having to be partially rewritten.
Screenshot Tv.um.es/Universität Murcia
According to the research group, the claw marks indicate that the cave bears, which became extinct around 24,000 years ago, might have lived in much more southern regions on the peninsula than previously assumed.
ignaciomartinlerma.com
“The identification of cave bear claw marks on many parts of the walls makes the cave an important and truly unique example of a place where these giant mammals lived in southern Europe.” (Pictured: a live reconstruction of a cave bear)
Wikimedia Commons/Sergio Larosa/CC
Giant stalactites and claw marks
According to a statement, the long wait was worth it. “We were faced with a world-class discovery,” said the team led by Ignacio Martín Lerma and Didac Románin. In the light of their flashlights, the archaeologists saw a huge cave. With a length of almost 1.6 kilometers and cavities in the rock that are almost 30 meters high, the cave is probably the largest in the region, as Lerma says. He is a professor and chief archaeologist at the Universidad Murcia. The stalactites are “just as unrivaled” with a length of three prayers and a centimeter in diameter. This means that, thanks to the isolation of the cave, they had grown under almost unchanged conditions for many millennia.
The Cueva del Arco complex is considered relatively well explored. Archaeologists have already been able to determine that it has traces of settlement dating back 50,000 years. The caves are one of the few places on the eastern Iberian Peninsula where the Transition from Neanderthals to modern humans can be documented. The discovery of the previously unknown cave gives the experts hope for more finds.
Cave formerly inhabited by bears
But that was not all: the researchers discovered the traces of bear claws on the walls. These might lead to the prehistory of Spain having to be partially rewritten. According to the research group, they indicate that the cave bears died out 27,000 to 28,000 years ago may have lived in much more southern climes on the peninsula than previously assumed.
“The identification of cave bear claw marks on many parts of the walls makes the cave an important and truly unique example of a place where these giant mammals lived in southern Europe.” The animals were similar in size to polar bears and reached a weight of 400 to 1000 kilograms.
An “intact natural treasure” that needs to be preserved
The find “exceeded all of our expectations,” says Lerma. It opens a new door to prehistory. This must be preserved: “We have to remember that we are holding an intact natural treasure in our hands, and it should stay that way.” To do this, it is necessary to prevent visits for the time being – until all scientific studies have been completed.
Researchers have been working in the caves of the Cueva del Arco since 2015. Since then, numerous settlements that are between 7,000 and 50,000 years old have been uncovered in the cave system.
