An accidental discovery
In March 1868, workers building a railway line through the Vézère Valley blasted a section of limestone cliff. Inside a rock shelter they named "Cro-Magnon," they found animal bones, flint tools, and five ancient human skeletons. This was not the first discovery of prehistoric human relatives—Neanderthal remains had been identified in Germany a decade earlier—but it was the first time that anatomically modern humans, Homo sapiens, were found in a prehistoric European context. The geologist Louis Lartet, son of the paleontologist Édouard Lartet, was called to lead the scientific excavation. The remains he and his team uncovered were dated to the Upper Paleolithic period, approximately 28,000 years old. The discovery at the Abri de Cro-Magnon, or Cro-Magnon rock shelter, confirmed the antiquity of our own species in Europe.
The first modern humans
The skeletons belonged to four adults and one infant. The most complete specimen, a male estimated to be under 50 years old, became known as "Cro-Magnon 1" or the "Old Man of Cro-Magnon". These individuals were robustly built, with males standing around 166 to 171 cm tall (about 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 7 inches). Their skulls showed features identical to modern humans: a high, vertical forehead, a distinct chin, and the absence of the prominent brow ridges seen on Neanderthals. The brain capacity was about 1,600 cubic centimeters, slightly larger than the average for humans today.
Analysis of the Cro-Magnon 1 skull reveals a difficult life. The bones of his face are pitted with lesions. For decades, scientists attributed this to a fungal infection. More recent analysis using micro CT scans suggests the man had a genetic condition called neurofibromatosis type 1, which would have caused benign tumors to grow on his face. One large tumor on his forehead likely eroded the frontal bone, leaving a distinct impression. The skeletons of other individuals found at the site show evidence of traumatic injuries, including fused neck vertebrae and a healed skull fracture in an adult female, indicating they survived significant physical hardship. Found with the skeletons were personal ornaments, including perforated seashells and animal teeth, indicating intentional burial with ritualistic elements.