40,000-Year-Old Sealed Cave Opened In Gibraltar. Here's What Was Found

The Vanguard Cave in the Gorham's Cave Complex has been an area of interest among Gibraltar National Museum archaeologists since 2012.

They have been working relentlessly to find potential chambers and passages blocked by sediment in Vanguard Cave. The cave is a part of the UNESCO World Heritage site Gorham's Cave Complex.

In 2021, they found a chamber at the back of Vanguard Cave, which had been sealed for at least 40,000 years, according to the official museum website.

As per the initial findings, archaeologists saw "remains of lynx, hyaena and Griffon Vulture as well as scratch marks on the walls, produced by a carnivore as yet to be identified." The bones were found exactly where they had fallen.

"Preliminary investigation has revealed a 13-metre chamber on the very roof of the cave. There is also a large whelk, which must have been transported up to the chamber, which, even today, is well away from the coast. There is also evidence of ancient earthquakes," the website added.

The discovery has also shed light on Neanderthal existence and their survival skills. The Gorham's Cave Complex has four caves that "provide evidence of Neanderthal occupation over a span of more than 100,000 years," as per the UNESCO Heritage site.

The findings are a testament to the traditions, culture and values of the Neanderthals. The hunting techniques, using feathers for ornamentation and abstract rock engravings, have contributed substantially to debates about Neanderthals and human evolution.

As per the study published in Quaternary International in 2016, Neanderthals, in all likelihood, occupied the cave 33,000 and 24,000 years ago.