Fumane is recognized by the scientific international community as one of the most important prehistoric sites in Europe, because it conserves, in an exceptional stratigraphy, traces of its use by the last Neanderthals and by the earliest Homo sapiens. The deposits also constitute an important source of information for understanding the Lessini environment during the last glacial age, with its various changes between humid subtropical and dry cold climates.
The cave is 9 metres large and has many galleries up to 13 metres. Within the cave the archaeologists have identified two settlement phases: the most ancient one refers to the Neanderthals and spans between 100.000 and 34.000 years ago, the most recent one spans between 34.000 and 10.000 years ago.
The most ancient remains, which refer to the Neanderthal, have been identified on small areas between 6 and 8 squared metres and included tens of thousands of flint and fauna fragments incorporated in well preserved settlement layers. Some areas are particularly relevant because of the richness of the remains in connection to the production of flint tools as per the Levallois technique, to the breaking of bones and to the lighting of fires.
The combustion areas are placed either directly on the ground or in small holes, nine of which have been found at the site, surrounded by flint fragments and tools and by herbivores’ intentionally broken bones. The cutting of the animals, particularly ibexes and deers, is documented by a great amount of bones which sometimes are still anatomically connected and which are normally associated to stone tools. The overall set of findings suggests that the economy here was based on hunting.
The remains that pertain to Homo sapiens document a repeated temporary use of the cave, and the analysis of faunal data suggest that it would happen between the end of spring and autumn. They include some medium-large fireplaces, the traces of a possible hut, a large quantity of flint tools and wastes, together with sea shells, some red ochre areas and the remains of the decoration of the cave’s vault, again in red ochre. The combustion areas are in semicircular holes with the diameter between 100 and 50 centimetres and depth between 20 and 5 centimetres. These holes contain charcoal layers and are slightly red because of the fire. They contain burnt flint fragments and bones of ibex and deer.
An artefact of relevant importance is a stone that was found on the site and which represents an anthropomorphic figure with the hands high to the sky, the so-called shaman. The stone dates back to the Aurignacian (upper Palaeolithic).
The analysis of the faunal data suggests the hypothesis that Homo sapiens hunted in different places, all close to the site, and that he did not focus on one particular type of prey. In fact, the game was from altitudes that were above and below that of the Fumane cave, respectively from the alpine grasslands and the rocks environments, such as in the case of ibex and chamoises, and from the wood below the cave, such as in the case of deers and roe-deers.