A research team has uncovered exceptional evidence of prehistoric archery from the early Neolithic, including Europe’s oldest bowstrings made from animal tendons and highly sophisticated arrows crafted with olive and reed wood and birch bark pitch. These findings, enabled by the remarkable preservation in the Cave of Los Murciélagos, highlight an advanced level of technical mastery.
The interdisciplinary study of archaeological remains from the Cave of Los Murciélagos in Albuñol, Granada, has uncovered remarkable insights into the advanced craftsmanship of Neolithic archery in the Iberian Peninsula (5300–4900 BCE). This research provides groundbreaking information in the European context about the materials and manufacturing techniques used by Neolithic communities.
Led by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and published in Scientific Reports (Nature Portfolio), the study involved collaboration among several research institutions and universities in Spain, including the University of Alcalá (UAH), the Institute of Heritage Sciences (INCIPIT-CSIC), and the UAB Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB). Researchers from the Université Côte d’Azur and the CNRS in France also contributed to the work.
The exceptional preservation of organic remains, due to desiccation, allowed researchers to document components of Neolithic archery equipment used by populations in southwestern Iberia approximately 7,000 years ago. The findings include arrows with intact feathers, remnants of fibers, and two bowstrings made from animal sinew—the oldest known examples of their kind in Europe.
“The identification of these bowstrings marks a crucial step in the study of Neolithic weaponry. Not only were we able to confirm the use of animal tendons to make them, but we also identified the genus or species of animal from which they came,” explains Ingrid Bertin, researcher at the UAB and first author of the published article. Tendons from Capra sp. (a genus that includes several species of goats and ibex), Sus sp. (a genus to which wild boar and pigs belong), and roe deer were used, which were twisted together to create ropes of sufficient length.
“With this technique, strong and flexible ropes could be made, to meet the needs of experienced archers. This degree of precision and technical mastery, where every detail counts, attests to the exceptional knowledge of these Neolithic artisans,” says Raquel Piqué, a researcher in the Department of Prehistory of the UAB and coordinator of the study.
Local resources and thorough transformations
On the other hand, the arrow shafts provide new information on the use of local resources and a thorough transformation. For the first time, the analysis has revealed the use of olive wood (Olea europaea) and reed wood (Phragmites sp.)
The use of reeds for the manufacturing of arrows in prehistoric Europe, a hypothesis considered by researchers for decades, is finally confirmed by these findings. In addition, the combination of olive, willow, and reed wood is a particularly interesting choice of materials: “This integration offers a hard and dense front section, complemented by a light back, which significantly improves the ballistic properties of the arrows, whose tips are made of wood without stone or bone projectiles. Future experiments may clarify whether these arrows could have been used for hunting or close-range combat, or whether they could have been non-lethal arrows,” Ingrid Bertin states.
Finally, the arrow shafts were coated with birch bark pitch, a material obtained by a controlled heat treatment of the bark of this tree, used not only for its protective properties, but probably also for decorative purposes, which adds an aesthetic and functional dimension to the equipment.
New perspective on the region’s Neolithic groups
Since the early Neolithic, populations have developed technical knowledge that attests to an impressive adaptation to local resources, but the combination of varied materials and advanced techniques identified in this study redefines current understanding of the technologies used by prehistoric communities and offers a new perspective on Neolithic societies in the region, the research team states.
“The discoveries contribute to enriching the understanding of the artisan practices and daily life of prehistoric societies and open ways for the study of ancient weaponry, by revealing methods and materials that can be investigated at other European Neolithic archaeological sites,” says Raquel Piqué. She goes on to say: “In addition, they provide a better understanding of the symbolic sphere linked to these grave goods from a funerary context, such as the Cave of Los Murciélagos.”
The research team concludes that the discoveries made at the Cave of Los Murciélagos redefine the limits of our knowledge about the earliest agricultural societies in Europe and provide a unique view of ancestral archery materials and practices.
The study of the archaeological remains was carried out by applying advanced microscopy and biomolecular analysis techniques, which combine protein and lipid analysis.
Reference: “First evidence of early neolithic archery from Cueva de los Murciélagos (Albuñol, Granada) revealed through combined chemical and morphological analysis” by Ingrid Bertin, María Martín-Seijo, Francisco Martínez-Sevilla, Krista McGrath, Jonathan Santana, Maria Herrero-Otal, Rafael M. Martínez Sánchez, Antoni Palomo, Martine Regert, Isabelle Théry and Raquel Piqué, 5 December 2024, Scientific Reports.
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-77224-w
This research was carried out under the framework of the CHEMARCH project (MSCA-ITN-EJD, The chemistry and molecular biology of prehistoric artifacts) funded by the European Union Horizon 2020 programme, with the participation of ICTA-UAB, Universidad de Alcalá, INCIPIT-CSIC, Universidad de Córdoba, Universidad de las Palmas de Gran Canarias, Université Côte d’Azur and CNRS (France).
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