Our early human ancestors left behind archaeological clues whenever they went, but the ones they left in caves are often particularly well preserved. From South Africa to Siberia, archaeologists have discovered prehistoric bones, fire ash and even fossilized human footprints inside caves.
Early humans may have used caves for shelter, but they also used them in ways that are hard for us to decipher. For example, France’s Bruniquel Cave contains large circular designs on the floor that Neanderthals made with stalagmites roughly 176,000 years ago. While modern humans can marvel at the designs, we can only wonder at why prehistoric artists made them. Below are six caves where our early human ancestors left intriguing evidence of their lives and development.