In a groundbreaking discovery, a professor of geology from the University of South Florida unearthed a 5,600-year-old stone bridge hidden within an ancient cave on the island of Mallorca. This find challenges the longstanding belief about when humans first settled in the Western Mediterranean, suggesting that they inhabited Mallorca much earlier than previously thought.
For years, archaeologists puzzled over why evidence of early human settlement on Mallorca was scarce, despite its proximity to the mainland. Smaller, more distant islands had shown signs of early human activity, leading experts to believe that early settlers bypassed Mallorca. However, this recent discovery provides the first concrete evidence that humans were present on the island much earlier, reshaping our understanding of early human migration in the region.
The discovery was made in the Genovesa Cave, a mostly underwater cavern that has been submerged by rising sea levels over the past 6,000 years. The cave, adorned with stunning calcite formations, had remained largely unexplored until the year 2000 when a team of researchers began their investigation. It was during this exploration that they found a 25-foot-long stone bridge, a structure that would change our understanding of human history on the island.
Professor Bogdan Onac, the lead author of the study published in *Communications Earth & Environment*, stated, “The presence of this submerged bridge and other artifacts indicates a sophisticated level of activity, implying that early settlers recognized the cave’s water resources and strategically built infrastructure to navigate it.” This suggests that early inhabitants were not only present but also advanced enough to construct infrastructure to aid their survival and movement.
The bridge itself was constructed without the use of mortar or cement, relying on large limestone blocks and flat boulders, some over five feet long, to create a stable path across an underwater lake. This path led to a dry chamber within the cave, providing researchers with crucial evidence to date the bridge. Pottery found within the cave, dating back to the Naviform period (between 3550-3000 years ago), suggested that the bridge was even older, further pushing back the timeline of human activity on the island.
Geological formations within the cave, including a light-colored band on the bridge, provided additional clues. This “bathtub ring,” as researchers described it, helped them estimate the age of the bridge. “According to our chronology, the sea-level rise ceased and remained stable for several hundred years between 5,964 and 5,359 years ago,” Professor Onac explained, adding that this discovery adds to the growing body of evidence that humans settled on Mediterranean islands much earlier than previously documented.
While previous evidence had placed human arrival in the region at around 4,400 years ago, the bridge in Genovesa Cave suggests that humans may have been active on Mallorca as far back as 6,000 years ago. Although some theories propose even earlier dates, up to 9,000 years ago, inconsistencies and poor preservation of radiocarbon-dated material have left these claims unconfirmed. However, with this new discovery, scientists can confidently assert that humans were indeed present on the island around 6,000 years ago.
Despite the significance of this find, many questions remain unanswered. “The exact reasons behind the construction of these structures in Genovesa Cave remain elusive,” Professor Onac acknowledged. Yet, the depth of the bridge and its correlation with other geological features in the cave strongly support the idea of an early human presence on Mallorca.
“This research underscores the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration in uncovering historical truths and advancing our understanding of human history,” Onac concluded. The discovery not only sheds light on the ingenuity and capabilities of early human settlers but also provides a new perspective on the human impact on the environment. As noted by Vice, the existence of this ancient bridge also serves as a reminder that climate change is not a modern phenomenon but one that has shaped human history for millennia.
This underwater bridge, hidden for thousands of years, now emerges as a vital piece of the puzzle in understanding the early history of human settlement in the Mediterranean, challenging old assumptions and opening new avenues of research into our ancient past.
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