Object description

Shanidar Cave is an archaeological site located on Bradost Mountain in the Erbil Governorate of Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. Anthropologist Ralph Solecki led a crew from Columbia University to explore the site. With the accompaniment of Kurdish workers, the group excavated the Shanidar Cave and found the remains of eight adult and two infant Neanderthals, dating from around 65,000–35,000 years ago . These individuals were uncovered amongst a Mousterian layer accompanied by various stone tools and animal remains. The cave also contains two later proto-Neolithic cemeteries, one of which dates back about 10,600 years and contains 35 individuals.