In 1993, speleologists exploring the Grotta di Lamalunga near Altamura stumbled into a chamber deep inside the cave system and found a human skeleton encrusted in calcite formations. The skull — still attached to the skeleton, still in its original position — stared back at them from a niche in the cave wall, half-absorbed by stalactites that had been growing over it for 150,000 years. It was a Neanderthal. The most complete Neanderthal skeleton ever discovered. DNA analysis (2015) confirmed: 150,000 years old, male, fully adult, probably trapped in the cave and died of dehydration or starvation. The calcite preserved every detail. The original skeleton remains in the cave — unreachable and unextractable without destroying it. A full-scale reproduction is displayed in Altamura's museum. Puglia guide → · Alta Murgia →
Plan my Puglia trip →The cave itself is NOT visitable. The skeleton is 60 meters underground in a narrow passage — the chamber where the Neanderthal died is accessible only to researchers. What you CAN see: Palazzo Baldassarre museum in Altamura center houses a scientifically accurate reproduction of the skeleton in its cave setting, plus exhibits on the Neanderthal's world — the animals, climate, and landscape of Puglia 150,000 years ago. Nearby, the Cava dei Dinosauri (Dinosaur Quarry) preserves thousands of dinosaur footprints from 80 million years ago in exposed limestone. Guided visits organized by the municipality (€5-8).
Altamura itself is worth the visit: the most beautiful bread in Italy (Pane di Altamura DOP — massive wood-fired loaves that last a week), a medieval centro storico of whitewashed alleys, and the Frederick II cathedral (1232). The bread alone justifies a detour.
Palazzo Baldassarre museum: Piazza Zanardelli, Altamura. €5. Hours vary — check comune.altamura.ba.it. Getting there: Ferrovie Appulo Lucane train from Bari (1h) or car (45min from Bari, 20min from Matera). Duration: 1h museum + 1h town walk + bread tasting. Combine with: Matera (20min), Alta Murgia and Castel del Monte (40min), Gravina in Puglia (15min — the canyon town).