Les nouvelles fouilles dans le gisement moustérien de la Caverna Delle Fate(Finale, Ligurie italienne)

Neandertal human fossils coming from the Caverna delle Fate (Fairy Cave) in Finale Ligure,

Savona, Northern Italy, were discovered among late 19th century collections housed in the Archeological

Museum of Turin. These discoveries stimulated the beginning of French-Italian excavation. This

collaborative work confirmed the presence of Mousterian strata in the cave and demonstrated alternating

occupations by humans and Ursus spelaeus. During these excavations, new human fossils were discovered

which corroborated the presence of Neandertals in the Caverna delle Fate. The stratigraphic context of remaining in situ layers and one undisturbed section of the entire deposit is currently being analyzed to determine the chronostratigraphic and paleoclimatic sequence of the early Wiirm in Southern Europe.