Furninha, also known as Dominique's cave, is a natural cave on the southern slope of the Peniche peninsula in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. The cave is situated on the cliffs between the Peniche Fortress and the Cape Carvoeiro. The cave is located furthest west of any

Neanderthal Neanderthals (, also ''Homo neanderthalensis'' and erroneously ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis''), also written as Neandertals, are an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago. While the ...

site. Neanderthals became extinct over 40,000 years ago. The cave was also inhabited by modern humans during the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...

History

Furninha was explored by Nery Delgado at the end of the 19th century. Delgado demonstrated the caves' history of habitation by Neanderthals. Delgado's excavation revealed the existence of animal occupation during the Lower Paleolithic , Neanderthal presence during the Middle Paleolithic, and the presence of

Homo sapiens Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

at the end of

Chalcolithic The Copper Age, also called the Chalcolithic (; from grc-gre, χαλκός ''khalkós'', "copper" and ''líthos'', "stone") or (A)eneolithic (from Latin '' aeneus'' "of copper"), is an archaeological period characterized by regular ...

. Delgado also reports the practice of

anthropophagy Anthropophagy is the custom and practice of eating human flesh. It may refer to: *Human cannibalism, when one human consumes the flesh of another ** Anthropophage, a member of a mythical race of cannibals **Child cannibalism, the act of eating a ...

by the Neanderthals of Furninha who, despite the proximity of the sea, were mainly hunters. The collection of remains gathered by Delgado was deposited in a Lisbon museum. Observation of a number of photographs from Furninha reveals the existence of a thin film of

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...

. This flora is believed to be in close relation with

fungi A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...

, and displays intense colors of green, yellow and red zones. The walls of the cave are covered with nutrients generated by the mixing of rain waters dropping through the vent of the vault with droplets of seawater entering the cave.

In popular culture

*As a record of collective memory, the cave is known as the ''Cave of Dominique''. Dominique was supposedly the name of an elusive robber who took refuge in Furninha. *The Furninha cave is associated with the "Legend of a love in Peniche".(''pt'')
Lenda dos Passos de Dona Leonor
'' (The Legend of Dona Leonor's steps)

References

External links

* J. E. Nery Delgado, La grotte de Furninha à Peniche a
Archive.org

a
PhotoArch

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Pinturas em Peniche

Human Origin Sites and the World Heritage Convention in Eurasia
– published in 2015 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Pleistocene Birds of Gruta da Furninha (Peniche-Portugal) : A Paleontological and Paleoenvironmental Aproach [sic]
paper a
Research Gate
{{Authority control 19th-century archaeological discoveries Caves of Portugal Legends Neolithic Paleolithic Neanderthal sites