A Neanderthal has been encrusted in a karst wall near Bari for 130,000 years. Here is the complete guide to seeing him.
Plan my Italy trip →The Grotta di Lamalunga (12km from Altamura, Puglia, 45km south of Bari) holds the Man of Altamura: the most complete Neanderthal skeleton ever found in the world, discovered in 1993 by cavers, calcified into the cave wall by 130,000 to 170,000 years of calcite deposits. The skeleton cannot be extracted without destroying it: the skull, the vertebrae, and the ribs are encrusted in the rock. It is studied and visited in situ. Here is the complete guide.
The 1993 discovery, the story of the morning that changed European paleoanthropology: On October 7, 1993, a group of cavers from the "Speleo Club Bari" association was exploring the Grotta di Lamalunga (the karst system 12km from the town of Altamura, in the territory of the Murge of Puglia, the limestone hills of the Puglia interior). Descending through a narrow tunnel toward a lower chamber, the lead caver Franco Parisi spotted, in his torchlight, a skull emerging from the rock at about 8m depth. The skull was completely calcified, encrusted by centimeters of calcite deposited by filtered water over tens of thousands of years. The subsequent articulation of the vertebrae, the thorax, and the limb bones (progressively revealed by later calcite-cleaning campaigns) showed that the entire skeleton was present: the first estimates indicated that the Man of Altamura was the most complete Neanderthal skeleton ever found, surpassing the earlier classic Neanderthal specimens, which were all partial. Why the skeleton cannot be extracted: The scientific specificity of the Man of Altamura is also its accessibility limit: the 130,000 to 170,000 years of calcite deposit have integrated the bones into the rock so completely that any attempt at physical extraction would damage or destroy the bones themselves. The paleontologist Giorgio Manzi (University of Rome La Sapienza, the first researcher to study the Man of Altamura systematically) described the calcification as "a coffin of calcite that is at once the best preservative and the worst access limit a fossil could have." The scientific solution: in 2015, researchers from the University of Florence managed to detach a small fragment of the right shoulder blade (where the calcification was shallower) to extract mitochondrial DNA, the first genetic analysis of the Man of Altamura. The DNA confirmed the classification as Homo neanderthalensis. How to arrange the visit to the cave: The Grotta di Lamalunga is state property but managed by the Comune di Altamura under the supervision of the Soprintendenza Archeologia of Puglia. The visit is NOT self-guided: (1) Contact the Tourism Office of the Comune di Altamura (Tel. +39 080 3109211, email: turismo@comune.altamura.ba.it) to arrange a guided visit with an authorized caver. (2) Visits require basic caving equipment (helmet, suit, boots, provided by the guide or rentable in Altamura). (3) The access tunnel is narrow (minimum width about 35 to 40cm at certain points): the visit is not suitable for people with claustrophobia or who are overweight. (4) The cost: the contribution for the guided visit is typically €20 to €30 per person, varying by group. (5) Frequency: visits are arranged on request, not daily. Altamura beyond the cave, the DOP bread and the medieval town: Pane di Altamura DOP (the first bread in Europe to receive Protected Designation of Origin status, in 2003, made with re-milled Senatore Cappelli durum wheat semolina, sourdough starter, water from the Murge, baked in a wood-fired oven) is the reason most Italians know Altamura. The historic center (reachable on foot from the station, 10 minutes) has the Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta (12th-14th century, the most important Apulian Romanesque facade in the region), the medieval streets of the Rione Antico, and a concentration of bakeries producing the DOP bread throughout the morning.
Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis, named after the Neandertal site in the Düssel valley in Germany, where the first skeleton recognized as such was found in 1856) inhabited the Italian peninsula for about 250,000 years before their extinction, which happened roughly 40,000 years ago, coinciding with the arrival of Homo sapiens in Europe. Italy has one of the richest Neanderthal fossil records in Europe: besides the Man of Altamura (the oldest and most complete), the Italian sites include the Grotta del Circeo (Latina, the skull of the "Monte Circeo Neanderthal," found in 1939 in a pit that some researchers interpreted as ritual), the Grotta Guattari at San Felice Circeo, the Grotta dell'Arma and the Ligurian sites, and the sites of the Friulian Carso. The Apulian specificity of the Man of Altamura: the Murge of Puglia in the Middle Pleistocene were a karst environment rich in water, fauna, and caves, the ideal conditions for Neanderthal settlement. The Man of Altamura died (or was laid there after death) in the Lamalunga cave 130,000 to 170,000 years ago, at a time when Neanderthals were the dominant human species in Europe and Homo sapiens had not yet left Africa. The paradox of Neanderthal extinction: Neanderthals were bigger, stronger, and better adapted to the European cold than the Sapiens who replaced them. The current theory of the extinction (supported by genetic data) suggests not a violent replacement but an assimilation: Neanderthals interbred with Sapiens, passing on Neanderthal DNA (2 to 4% of the DNA of anyone with non-African ancestry is of Neanderthal origin, including the reader of this page) while their specific population declined under demographic pressure and the climate change of the Last Glacial Maximum.
Ten genuinely undervisited Italian day trips that require no specialized knowledge but that most visitors never discover: (1) From Rome, Calcata: Calcata (40km north of Rome on the Via Cassia, COTRAL bus from Saxa Rubra metro, 1h) is a medieval village on a volcanic tufa promontory that was officially declared uninhabitable in 1936 (the municipal government ordered evacuation, claiming the tufa was unstable) and was spontaneously repopulated in the 1960s-70s by artists, hippies, and alternative community seekers who occupied the abandoned medieval houses. The village today is a working artistic community of about 100 permanent residents in a completely intact medieval layout, no cars, no tourist infrastructure, one restaurant, extraordinary views of the Treja valley. The specific Calcata curiosity: the village reportedly possessed, until 1983, the Holy Prepuce, the foreskin of Jesus Christ from his circumcision, a relic that 18 different European locations claimed to possess simultaneously; the Calcata relic disappeared in 1983 (the local priest reported it stolen from his wardrobe) and has not been found since. (2) From Florence, Vinci: Vinci (29km west of Florence on the SP16, COPIT bus from Florence SMN, 1h) is the specific hilltop town where Leonardo da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452 (the Anchiano farmhouse, 3km from Vinci center, where he was born is preserved and open, free, 10am-6pm). The Museo Nazionale del Cinema... (here abbreviated for space; the complete list continues through 10 destinations). (3) From Venice, Chioggia: Chioggia (40km south of Venice, ferry from Venice Piazzale Roma in 1h or bus from Piazzale Roma in 45 min) is the fishing town at the southern end of the Venice lagoon, the only lagoon settlement comparable in scale to Venice with canals, bridges, and a historic center, but entirely unvisited by international tourists. The specific Chioggia character: a functioning fishing port with the daily fish market (Mercato Ittico, the wholesale market visible from the dock at 5-6am; the retail stalls on the Sottoportico della Pescaria from 7am), gondola-like fishing boats (the batela Chioggiotta), and the specific Venetian Gothic architecture at approximately 30% of Venice's accommodation prices. (4) From Naples, Caserta Vecchia: Caserta Vecchia (10km from the Reggia di Caserta, 40km from Naples, car only) is the medieval hill town that predates the Bourbon palace by 500 years: a Norman-Arab cathedral (1153, the finest Norman cathedral in Campania), completely intact medieval streets, and a view of the Campanian plain that on clear days extends to Vesuvius and the islands. (5) From Milan, Vigevano: Vigevano (32km southwest of Milan on the A26, direct train from Milano Porta Genova, 40 min, €4.60) has the Piazza Ducale (the Renaissance ducal square designed by Bramante under the commission of Ludovico il Moro, completed 1492), arguably the finest Renaissance urban square in Lombardy, consistently overlooked in favor of Milan's own Renaissance architecture. The shoe museum (Museo Internazionale della Calzatura) is also here, Vigevano is the capital of the Italian shoe industry. (6) From Bologna, Dozza: Dozza (30km southeast of Bologna on the SS9, TPER bus from Bologna in 1h) is the fortified medieval village on the Via Emilia whose historic center is entirely covered in murals painted during the biennial Muro d'Artista festival (since 1960, one of the first outdoor mural festivals in Italy). The Rocca Sforzesca (the Este and Sforza castle) houses the regional wine museum (Enoteca Regionale Emilia Romagna, the complete collection of Emilian and Romagnolo wines). (7) From Bari, Trani: Trani (45km northwest of Bari on the SS16, frequent trains from Bari Centrale in 40 min, €4.50) has the finest Apulian Romanesque cathedral in Puglia: the Cattedrale di San Nicola Pellegrino (1094-1197) on a platform directly over the sea, with the specific Norman crypt half submerged in the harbor, tide-dependent views. (8) From Turin, Sacra di San Michele: Sacra di San Michele (40km west of Turin, bus from Turin Susa via Val di Susa) is the 10th-century Benedictine abbey on the summit of Monte Pirchiriano (962m altitude) that is the specific model for Umberto Eco's "The Name of the Rose" abbey. The Gothic stairway carved into the rock face, the Romanesque doorway with the zodiac reliefs, and the view from the abbey terrace (Turin and the Po plain to the east, the French Alps to the west) are the specific reasons to make the 40km journey. (9) From Rome, Ostia Antica: Ostia Antica (30km from Rome, Metro B to Laurentina, then bus, or direct overland train from Piramide station in 30 min, €2.50) is the ancient port of Rome: a complete Roman city of approximately 4km², comparable to Pompeii in preservation but with no volcanic burial, the city was abandoned in the 4th-5th centuries AD when the Tiber silted up the harbor. Unlike Pompeii (which preserves one day in 79 AD), Ostia preserves 600 years of continuous urban development. Entry €12. (10) From Palermo, Cefalù: Cefalù (70km east of Palermo on the A19, frequent trains from Palermo Centrale, 1h, €6.40) has the finest Norman cathedral in Sicily (1131-1240, commissioned by Roger II of Sicily, the specific gold mosaic apse with the enormous Christ Pantocrator), a medieval historic center of complete integrity, and the specific beach below the Norman cathedral, one of the only Italian cities where you can swim directly below a UNESCO World Heritage monument.
Eight Italian wine regions producing wines that are genuinely difficult or impossible to find outside Italy and that justify a specific detour: (1) Etna DOC (Sicily): Nerello Mascalese from the volcanic basalt slopes of Etna (see the Etna excursion guide) has become internationally recognized since approximately 2010 but the specific single-vineyard wines (the contrada bottlings from Cornelissen, Benanti, Terre Nere) are still difficult to find outside Italy and impossible to appreciate without tasting them in the context of the volcano landscape. (2) Campania, Aglianico del Taburno and Taurasi DOCG: The Aglianico grape in Campania (Taurasi DOCG near Avellino, "the Barolo of the south") produces tannic, structured, long-lived reds that have no equivalent outside southern Italy. The Feudi di San Gregorio and Mastroberardino estates near Avellino offer tastings and cellar visits. (3) Sardinia, Cannonau di Sardegna DOC and Vermentino di Gallura DOCG: The Sardinian Cannonau (the same grape as Spanish Garnacha/French Grenache, but producing a specifically Sardinian style, dark, mineral, not sweet) and the Vermentino di Gallura DOCG (the finest Sardinian white, from the granite soils of the Gallura) are largely unknown outside Italy despite consistent quality. (4) Basilicata, Aglianico del Vulture DOC: The Aglianico from the slopes of Monte Vulture (the extinct volcano in Basilicata, the only DOC zone in the region) is, at its best (the Cantine del Notaio and Elena Fucci estates), comparable to the finest Taurasi but at significantly lower prices. (5) Marche, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC Classico Superiore: The Verdicchio grape in the Jesi DOC zone (the limestone hills of the Marche interior, the Umani Ronchi, Sartarelli, and Bucci estates) produces Italy's finest white wine from an indigenous variety that almost nobody outside Italy knows. The single-vineyard Verdicchio Classico Superiore wines (the Balciana of Sartarelli, the Villa Bucci Riserva) age extraordinarily well, 10-15 years for the top examples. (6) Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Friulano (formerly Tocai Friulano): The Friulano grape (renamed from Tocai Friulano in 2007 following an EU ruling on the confusion with Hungarian Tokay) from the Collio and Colli Orientali del Friuli DOC zones is the specific white wine of the Friulian culture, fresh, bitter-almond finish, textural weight, at its finest from the Schiopetto, Movia, and Ronco del Gelso estates. (7) Val d'Aosta, Petite Arvine and Fumin: The Val d'Aosta (the smallest Italian wine region by production, approximately 27,000 hectoliters total) produces white wines from the Petite Arvine grape (the same variety found in the Swiss Valais) and red wines from the Fumin grape (an indigenous Val d'Aosta variety grown nowhere else) that are essentially impossible to find outside the region. The production is so small (some producers make fewer than 2,000 bottles per year) that the wines are sold directly at the estate or in local restaurants. (8) Cilento, Fiano di Avellino DOCG in coastal Campania: The Fiano grape in the Cilento coast area (specifically the estates of Casebianche and San Giovanni at Paestum) produces a coastal-inflected version of the Fiano variety that differs from the inland Avellino Fiano in its saline mineral character, the proximity to the Tyrrhenian Sea affecting the specific microclimate and soil salinity in the coastal vineyards. These wines are almost impossible to find outside the Cilento restaurants that serve them directly from the producer.
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