The small Sirgenstein Cave, german: Sirgensteinhöhle is situated above sea level inside the high ''Sirgenstein'', a

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...

rock. The cave sits above the Ach River valley bottom in the central

Swabian Jura The Swabian Jura (german: Schwäbische Alb , more rarely ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending from southwest to northeast and in width. It is named after the region of ...

, southern Germany.

Archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

R. R. Schmidt excavated the site in 1906 during which he identified indices of prehistoric human presence. He recorded the complete

stratigraphic Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostra ...

sequence of

Palaeolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (), also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek: παλαιός '' palaios'', "old" and λίθος ''lithos'', "stone"), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone too ...

and

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 pa ...

origin. In his 1910 analysis Schmidt inspired future archaeologists with his pioneering concept of including the excavation site within its geographic region, contextualizing it within a wide scientific spectrum and demonstrated valuable results as he correlated the Sirgenstein layer structure to those of prehistoric sites in France. Mammoth ivory beads dating from 39,000 to 35,000 years ago have been uncovered at the cave. Because of its historical and cultural significance and its testimony to the development of Paleolithic art, the cave was inscribed on the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

as part of the Caves and Ice Age Art in the Swabian Jura site in 2017.

Site

Sirgenstein Cave is besides the better known sites Hohle Fels and

Geissenklösterle Geissenklösterle () is an archaeological site of significance for the central European Upper Paleolithic, located near the town of Blaubeuren in the Swabian Jura in Baden-Württemberg, southern Germany. First explored in 1963, the cave contains t ...

, one of three caves that bear evidence of prehistoric human presence, located in the Ach River valley within a distance of between Schelklingen village and

Blaubeuren Blaubeuren () is a town in the district of Alb-Donau near Ulm in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. it had 11,963 inhabitants. Geography Geographical location The core city Blaubeuren lies at the foot of the Swabian Jura, west of Ulm. Neighborin ...

village, around west of

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

city in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

. The wide cave entrance is located under a rock overhang and opens to the southwest and in a pair of ceiling openings at the opposite end. Its total length is , its width around and an average height of . Situated at the Sirgenstein limestone rock's southern face is a rockshelter (''Abri''). Its sediment analysis revealed temporary occupation phases of

Magdalenian The Magdalenian cultures (also Madelenian; French: ''Magdalénien'') are later cultures of the Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic in western Europe. They date from around 17,000 to 12,000 years ago. It is named after the type site of La Madel ...

hunter groups. The oldest known written record of the site dates to the Dominican

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

man Felix Fabri's 1488 book ''Historia Suevorum'' (Swabian History).

Oscar Fraas Oscar Friedrich von Fraas (17 January 1824, in Lorch (Württemberg) – 22 November 1897, in Stuttgart) was a German clergyman, paleontologist and geologist. He was the father of geologist Eberhard Fraas (1862–1915). Biography He studied ...

, another clergyman and 19th century scientist, educated at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

initiated systematic studies of the area in 1866.

Stratigraphy

Schmidt, who had the site completely excavated in summer and autumn 1906, finished his analysis in 1910 and published the 1912

monograph A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject. In library cataloging, ''monogra ...

''"The diluvial prehistory of Germany"'' (''Die diluviale Vorzeit Deutschlands''). In a synthesis of his own field data and the contemporary state of research he addressed archaeological questions interdisciplinary and placed the Sirgenstein Cave's research within the Ach River cave context, the Swabian Jura and the then known European context. He also recognized and articulated obvious correlations between the already voluminous French and German records of human, biological and cultural prehistory. Schmidt divided the Sirgenstein Cave sediments into eight (I to VIII) relevant and one sterile strata. Although stratigraphically consistent, the most recent cultures of the

Upper Paleolithic The Upper Paleolithic (or Upper Palaeolithic) is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. Very broadly, it dates to between 50,000 and 12,000 years ago (the beginning of the Holocene), according to some theories coin ...

layers received clarification. * VIII and VII: The lowest

Middle Palaeolithic The Middle Paleolithic (or Middle Palaeolithic) is the second subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. The term Middle Stone Age is used as an equivalent or a synonym for the Middle Pale ...

strata with material of

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

Mousterian The Mousterian (or Mode III) is an archaeological industry of stone tools, associated primarily with the Neanderthals in Europe, and to the earliest anatomically modern humans in North Africa and West Asia. The Mousterian largely defines the l ...

cultural assemblages. Lithic objects and stone tools were re-dated in 1996, re-analysis of the sediments suggests that these layers represent in fact only one horizon. * no label: A thin and archaeologically sterile layer, that contained arctic microfauna of small

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...

s, distinctly separates the deeper

deposits from the

Aurignacian The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with European early modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the Levant, where ...

sediments. * VI, V and IV:

layers of the

culture that contain bone tools and stone tools, retouched blades, gouges, nosed end scrapers, ivory items, arrow heads and perforated ivory beads. New among the animal fossils are

Woolly rhinoceros The woolly rhinoceros (''Coelodonta antiquitatis'') is an extinct species of rhinoceros that was common throughout Europe and Asia during the Pleistocene epoch and survived until the end of the last glacial period. The woolly rhinoceros was a me ...

, Cave lion,

Red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of ...

and wolf. Very sparse ''Homo sapiens'' dental remains, one

canine Canine may refer to: Zoology and anatomy * a dog-like Canid animal in the subfamily Caninae ** ''Canis'', a genus including dogs, wolves, coyotes, and jackals ** Dog, the domestic dog * Canine tooth, in mammalian oral anatomy People with the surn ...

and two

molars The molars or molar teeth are large, flat teeth at the back of the mouth. They are more developed in mammals. They are used primarily to grind food during chewing. The name ''molar'' derives from Latin, ''molaris dens'', meaning "millstone to ...

account for two individuals. * III, II and I: Incorrectly labeled ''Proto-Solutréen'' by Schmidt, layer III and II were later correctly assigned to the

Gravettian The Gravettian was an archaeological industry of the European Upper Paleolithic that succeeded the Aurignacian circa 33,000 years BP. It is archaeologically the last European culture many consider unified, and had mostly disappeared by 2 ...

culture, that apart from bone fragments and ivory items, contained hardly any stone tools.

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subs ...

, horse and

snowshoe hare The snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), also called the varying hare or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet. The animal's feet prevent it from sin ...

are most abundant. * The top layer I was re-attributed to the

culture. It contained gouges, drills, scrapers and fragmented arrow tips made from antlers and ivory. Among the animal fossils are reindeer, horse, snowshoe hare, grouse, cave bear, mammoth and a small number of

ibex An ibex (plural ibex, ibexes or ibices) is any of several species of wild goat (genus ''Capra''), distinguished by the male's large recurved horns, which are transversely ridged in front. Ibex are found in Eurasia, North Africa and East Africa ...

remnants. * unlabeled sediments deposited during the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

and

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly ...

cover the prehistoric sequence * AMS dating of bone point samples from the

and

layers to an age between 30,000 and 27,000 years ago confirmed consistency of subsequent cultural corrections.

Rock shelter

Excavated in 1937 by

Gustav Riek Johannes Gustav Riek (May 23, 1900 in Stuttgart − November 1, 1976 in Feldstetten) was a German archaeologist from the University of Tübingen who worked with the SS Ahnenerbe in their excavations, and led the teams that excavated the Vogelhe ...

, the rock shelter (Abri) on the ''Sirgenstein's'' southern face is about wide, deep and situated around above the cave site. The small number of distinct stone tools and animal remains retrieved reasonably supports the idea of occasional use during the Late

period.

Human occupation

Humans predominantly occupied the cave entrance, where fireplaces and hearths were preferably placed during the entire occupation sequence. The oldest traces of human activity between 50,000 and 35,000 years ago are Neanderthal fireplaces and pits with charred bones, that had been split for marrow extraction. Stone tools were crafted from local materials. The study of juvenile remains among the wild horse fossils lead Schmidt to conclude that the site was only occupied during the winter season. A thin sediment layer without traces of human presence suggests that ''Sirgenstein'' was not a location where

s had yielded to sudden ''Homo sapiens'' intrusion. The following

cultural sequence is characterized by bone points with simple bases and numerous end scrapers. AMS dates for the ''Sirgenstein''

obtained in 2003 produced an average date range of around 27,000 years ago for layer V and 30,500 years ago for layer VI. These periods are distinctly more recent than those of the merely distant

Aurignacian. Ivory figurines or other individual abstract pieces of art for which the region is well known are absent at ''Sirgenstein'', however, objects of personal decoration like perforated ivory beads are documented. The inner parts of the cave were more frequented only after the last glacial period beginning in the

period.

Faunal deposits

Tübingen University palaeontologist E.F. Koken conducted a

faunal Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zool ...

analysis in 1912, but he published no exact quantitative list and rather organized all species' occurrence in unreliable categories, such as ''"common"'' or ''"very common"''. Researchers reported in a publication of 2004, that an attempt to reanalyze and quantify the

fossils of the

layers failed, because many of the fossils Schmidt had excavated and mentioned in his analysis are missing in the collections of the

. Schmidt then wrote, which can no longer be confirmed, that 90% of the remains in the

layers were

cave bear The cave bear (''Ursus spelaeus'') is a prehistoric species of bear that lived in Europe and Asia during the Pleistocene and became extinct about 24,000 years ago during the Last Glacial Maximum. Both the word "cave" and the scientific name ...

fossils, wild horse was the second most abundant species, followed by

and

giant deer The Irish elk (''Megaloceros giganteus''), also called the giant deer or Irish deer, is an extinct species of deer in the genus '' Megaloceros'' and is one of the largest deer that ever lived. Its range extended across Eurasia during the Pleist ...

Mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks an ...

is represented by a tusk fragment from only a single juvenile individual. As numerous of the large bones, the cave bears included, were split or showed cut marks and impact fractures, Schmidt reasoned that all these animals were hunted by the human occupants. In the context of a 2002 to 2012 morphological and biometrical analysis and study on European

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

species migration and extinction a

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...

research team reconstructed an evolutionary process in the Ach Valley sites Hohle Fels,

and Sirgenstein by observing replacement among the cave bear species of ''

Ursus spelaeus The cave bear (''Ursus spelaeus'') is a prehistoric species of bear that lived in Europe and Asia during the Pleistocene and became extinct about 24,000 years ago during the Last Glacial Maximum. Both the word "cave" and the scientific name ...

'' by '' Ursus ingressus''. Based on

mitochondrial DNA Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA or mDNA) is the DNA located in mitochondria, cellular organelles within eukaryotic cells that convert chemical energy from food into a form that cells can use, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial D ...

analysis of fossils, the latest occurrence of ''Ursus spelaeus'' dates to around 31,500 years ago, the earliest record of a single specimen of ''Ursus ingressus'' dates to 36,300 years ago. Only around 32,000 years ago ''Ursus ingressus'' fossils of various mtDNA

haplotype A haplotype ( haploid genotype) is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent. Many organisms contain genetic material ( DNA) which is inherited from two parents. Normally these organisms have their DNA o ...

s begin to appear again. The five hundred-year span until ''Ursus spelaeus'' final disappearance around 31,500 years ago is considered to be the main intrusion/replacement phase of ''Ursus ingressus''.

References

External links

* Robert Rudolf Schmidt: ''Der Sirgenstein und die diluvialen Kulturstätten Württembergs'', E. Schweizerbartsche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Stuttgart 1910. * Michael Bolus,

Nicholas Conard Nicholas J. Conard, (born July 23, 1961 in Cincinnati) is an American and naturalized German citizen who works as an archaeologist and prehistorian. He is the director of the department for early prehistory and quaternary ecology and the fou ...

: ''100 Jahre Robert Rudolf Schmidts ‚Die diluviale Vorzeit Deutschlands‘''. In: ''Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Urgeschichte'' 21, 2012, pp. 63–89. {{Navbox prehistoric caves 1866 archaeological discoveries Archaeological sites in Germany Landforms of Baden-Württemberg Caves of Germany Neanderthal sites Limestone caves Mousterian