Strashnaya Cave





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The cave is situated on the left bank of the Inya River, at the point where the Strashny Stream joins it. This confluence is what gives the cave its distinctive name. The cave is currently difficult to access.

Strashnaya Cave

Location:  Russia, Altay Kray, Krasnoshchekovsky District

The archeological studies began in:  Discovered in 1966 as an ancient human site

Estimated layers age:  Over 50 ka to 3rd millennium BC

Human species:  Denisovans, Neanderthals, anatomically modern humans

However, in the past, its entrance was located at a lower elevation, making it a convenient temporary dwelling for ancient people, from the Middle Paleolithic through the Middle Ages. In the Stone Age, the cave housed all ancient human species known in Altay, i.e. Denisovans, Neanderthals, and anatomically modern humans, the closest to us in terms of physical characteristics. They left numerous stone and bone tools. The cave also contains many animal bones. While some were brought there by humans, others entered the cave naturally because the cave has always provided a convenient shelter for animals, both in the past and present. Today, Strashnaya Cave and its adjacent territory are a part of the Tigireksky Nature Reserve and are specially protected.

Archaeologists discovered a substantial layer of cultural deposits in the cave. These deposits were significantly affected by various factors, including the activities of marmots and hyenas who resided there and disturbed the soil. The presence of typical stone tools, however, allowed archaeologists to identify habitation periods in the cave by both Denisovans and Neanderthals. These groups likely visited the cave from the nearby Chagyrskaya Cave. Subsequently, anatomically modern humans, who arrived in the region around 50,000 years ago, gradually displaced more archaic human subspecies. Anthropological remains, such as child’s teeth and a fragment of humerus of an adult, allowed establishing that Upper Paleolithic people who visited Strashnaya Cave were “relatives” of ancient residents of other well-known Stone Age sites, i.e. Malta in the Irkutsk Region, Afontova Gora, and Listvenki in the Krasnoyarsk Kray.

Study history

The initial discovery of ancient tools in Strashnaya Cave occurred during a 1966 geological survey. Several years later, an expedition led by Tomsk scholar N.D. Ovodov, under the overall direction of Academician of the USSR RAS A.P. Okladnikov, began its archaeological investigations. The excavations were resumed three times after that: in 1989–1994 and in 2006–2009 under the direction of Academician of the RAS A.P. Derevianko and D.Sc. (History) A.N. Zenin, and in 2013–2017, under the direction of the Corresponding Member of the RAS A.I. Krivoshapkin and Cand.Sc. (History) A.V. Kharevich. With each return to the cave, researchers have utilized new technologies as well as dating and artifact analysis methods. This new phase of research into the Stone Age in Altay provides increasingly detailed insights into the migration patterns and adaptation strategies of ancient humans in the region. Therefore, the study of Strashnaya Cave is far from complete and holds significant potential for future discoveries.

Most well-known finds

Bone and stone tools, e.g. pointed weapons and bone eared needles, personal bone adornments, anatomically modern human remains