Qafzeh Cave << KAHF see >> is an archaeological site on the outskirts of Nazareth in northern Israel. People lived in the cave for thousands of years. Investigations conducted in 1933 showed that the limestone cave might preserve important prehistoric remains. René Neuville, a French diplomat and archaeologist, began excavations there in 1934. Since then, archaeologists have uncovered many layers of earth at the cave containing the remains of human activities dating back to about 90,000 to 100,000 years ago. In the lowest layers, archaeologists uncovered the buried skeletons—some partial and some nearly complete—of more than 25 people. In addition, archaeologists found the stone tools these early peoples used and the bones of the many animals they hunted for food.
The human skeletons buried at Qafzeh resemble those of modern human beings. Like people today, they had a high forehead, a higher and more rounded skull, and a well-developed chin, compared with the earliest human beings. They lived in the cave at the same time that Neandertals occupied locations near Qafzeh. Neandertals were prehistoric human beings who lived in Europe and Asia from about 150,000 to 39,000 years ago.
Some anthropologists think that the people of Qafzeh cave represent early populations of modern human beings who came to the Middle East from Africa. These peoples later migrated into Europe, eventually displacing the Neandertals who lived there. However, the Qafzeh skeletons were found with the same kinds of stone tools that Neandertals used at sites nearby. Archaeologists are not certain how the Qafzeh people’s ways of life differed from those of Neandertals.
Archaeologists determined that many of the skeletons at Qafzeh cave were buried on purpose. One burial, of a woman perhaps 14 to 16 years of age, has the skeleton of a child buried at her feet. The site stands as one of the oldest known examples of the purposeful burial of the dead. Anthropologists do not know exactly when human beings began practicing such funeral customs.
The burials at Qafzeh cave provide evidence that life was harsh for prehistoric people. Most of the burials are of individuals who died at a young age. In addition, many of the skeletons show signs of injuries or disease that may have been the cause of death.
See also Prehistoric people ( Modern humans.) (The Stone Age).
