Scaloria Cave

Description

Discovered in 1931 and excavated in 1931, 1967, and 1978–80, the karstic limestone Scaloria Cave is split into a Lower Chamber (Scaloria Bassa) and an Upper Chamber (Scaloria Alta), and sits 45 m (148 ft) above sea level. The Lower Chamber is found after a steep, crawling descent, and had pottery stored in it by Neolithic people. It is accessible by entering the Upper Chamber through the north facing entrance and continuing through the passageway towards the southwest. The Upper Chamber is measured to be 100 m (330 ft) in length, 80 m (260 ft) in width, and 2 m (6.6 ft) high. The usage of Scaloria Cave is largely concentrated in the Neolithic time period between 5500 and 5200 BC, though evidence also shows activity from the Upper Paleolithic and the Mesolithic. Animal bone analysis revealed origins in species extinct by the Neolithic.

Within the Lower Chamber, both stalactites and stalagmites are found, as well as 70 middle Neolithic pottery pieces, some intact, placed on or near cut stalagmites and clustered around a basin carved into the center which was carved in a rectangle and seemed to serve to collect dripping water from stalactites. Specimens of middle Neolithic figulina pottery were found, and the painted style of these vessels was coined "Low Scaloria Style". It consists of painted red bands and of painted bands in the margins with black motifs, and some pottery of this style is found at other sites such as in Abruzzo. Over 40 vessels were found crusted over, as their original function was to collect dripping water from stalactites.

The Lower Chamber has access to a pool of water, a small lake that is 3 m (9.8 ft) deep. The potsherds have origins in 1,500 vessels, and were painted with varying motifs such as eggs, snakes, and hourglasses. …

Dating

Systematic isotopic analysis was done by taking the stable carbon isotope and stable nitrogen isotope levels and taking the ratio. This showed the collagen quality of the human and animal remains, and revealed that the humans maintained a terrestrial diet in which they ate animal proteins, unlike other sites which revealed occupants who had marine influenced diets. Collagen dating was done by the Oxford Radiation Laboratory, and in the 1980s dating was done by the La Jolla Laboratory from charcoal samples. Radiocarbon dating on carbon remains in the hearths two dates within the Upper Paleolithic (11,040 +/- 190 B.P. and 10,790 +/- 210 B.P.) and two from the Mesolithic (9560 +/- 140 B.P. and 9030 +/- 120 B.P.). Radio carbon dating at the site dated ~9,000 to ~8,000 B.C. also revealed the disappearance of the wild horse and its replacement with Asinus hydruntinus, the remains of which made up 53.7% of the faunal assemblage found at the site. Strontium isotope analysis was also done on the remains in Scaloria Cave in an effort to extract information from the dental enamel on the origin of the remains and how close their relationship is to the cave itself. The greater range at the cave suggested that the cave was used ritualistically by people not of the area, suggesting a funerary site.

Proposed significance

Due to the continual use of the Upper Chamber as a burial site, and the lack of violence upon the remains prior to burial, it can be assumed that the disposal of remains in this way are not consistent with mass graves or cannibalism. The activity of the living upon the remains of the dead are proposed to be that of people who were attempting to ritualistically take the deceased from the realm of the living to that of the dead. Hypotheses were also made that perhaps remains were buried in the cave due to the visual similarity of bones and stalactites, or beliefs regarding the underground as a source of spiritual power. Cult behavior has also been suggested, potentially in reverence to the water, perhaps as a plea for rain in the face of a climate crisis. In short, the excarnation was a part of a multi-stage burial process, as was the mixing of the fragments into the other materials to possibly symbolize the passage into death, though some do note the possibility of the consumption of the flesh.