Furninha

Furninha

Furninha

Cave and archaeological site in Portugal

Furninha, also known as Dominique's cave, is a natural cave on the southern slope of the Peniche peninsula in Portugal. The cave is situated on the cliffs between the Peniche Fortress and the Cape Carvoeiro.[1][2][3] [4][5] The cave is located furthest west of any Neanderthal site. Neanderthals became extinct over 40,000 years ago.[6][7][8] The cave was also inhabited by modern humans during the Neolithic.[9][10][11]

Maximum range of Homo neanderthalensis.
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History

Furninha was explored by Nery Delgado at the end of the 19th century.[12][13] Delgado demonstrated the caves' history of habitation by Neanderthals.[14] Delgado's excavation revealed the existence of animal occupation during the Lower Paleolithic , Neanderthal presence during the Middle Paleolithic, and the presence of Homo sapiens at the end of Chalcolithic.[15][16] Delgado also reports the practice of anthropophagy by the Neanderthals of Furninha who, despite the proximity of the sea, were mainly hunters.[17][18] The collection of remains gathered by Delgado was deposited in a Lisbon museum.[19]

Observation of a number of photographs from Furninha reveals the existence of a thin film of flora. This flora is believed to be in close relation with fungi, and displays intense colors of green, yellow and red zones.[20][21]

The walls of the cave are covered with nutrients generated by the mixing of rain waters dropping through the vent of the vault with droplets of seawater entering the cave. [22]


  • As a record of collective memory, the cave is known as the Cave of Dominique. Dominique was supposedly the name of an elusive robber who took refuge in Furninha.
  • The Furninha cave is associated with the "Legend of a love in Peniche".[23]

References

  1. [1]
    "Peniche Fortress". www.cm-peniche.pt. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-01.
  2. [2]
    THE EVOLUTION OF THE COASTLINE AT PENICHE AND THE BERLENGAS ISLANDS (PORTUGAL) - STATE OF THE ART – article by Teresa Azevedo and Elisabete Nunes, Geology Center, Faculty of Sciences, Lisbon
  3. [3]
    Portugal, TCP/ARPT Centro de. "Peniche, Portugal's geological paradise! • Centro de Portugal". Archived from the original on 2019-11-08. Retrieved 2017-11-01.
  4. [4]
    "Furninha´s cave - Peniche guide". 9 January 2016. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  5. [5]
    Map, The Megalithic Portal and Megalith. "Gruta da Furninha". The Megalithic Portal.
  6. [6]
    The Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic transition in Cova Gran (Catalunya, Spain) and the extinction of Neanderthals in the Iberian Peninsula – article by Jorge Martıínez-Moreno, Rafael Mora and Ignacio de la Torre at CENTRE D'ESTUDIS DEL PATRIMONI ARQUEOLÒGIC DE LA PREHISTÒRIA, Journal of Human Evolution 58 (2010) 211–226
  7. [7]
    The Neanderthals: Evolution, Palaeoecology, and Extinction – paper by João Zilhão Archived 2020-10-11 at the Wayback Machine – print publication date: April 2014; online publication date: October 2013, DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199551224.013.054
  8. [8]
    Neanderthals disappeared from the Iberian Peninsula before than from the rest of Europe – news at Science Daily, February 5, 2015
  9. [9]
    M. Kunst, in: M. Blech - M. Koch - M. Kunst, Denkmäler der Frühzeit, Hispania Antiqua (2001) 475 f. Ill. 205 a-d Pl. Farbtaf. 12 a. b.
  10. [10]
    Gruta da Furninha at Megalithic (UK)
  11. [11]
    Carlos Pimenta, Silvério Figueiredo and Marta Moreno, (pt) Pinguinus impennis (download pt) – read Abstract and see Pinguin and egg (great auk) found in Furninha, destroyed by fire: Pinguin and egg – photograph of a pre-historical emperor penguin found in Furninha by Delgado. This piece was destroyed by a fire in the Bocage Museum (Setúbal)
  12. [12]
    J. E. Nery Delgado, La grotte de Furninha à Peniche, in: Congrès International d'Anthropologie et d'Archéologie Préhistorique, Compte Rendu de la 9ème Session à Lisbonne 1880 (1884) ; Read full text in French
  13. [13]
    Nery Delgado Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine biographical note
  14. [14]
    Revista Portuguesa de Arqueologia (download with an appropriate browser) : See reference to Delgado's work in the abstract of the paper on Pinguinus impennis
  15. [15]
    The Complex Carnivore Rich Assemblages from Furninha (Peniche, Portugal): a Multidisciplinary Approach Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine, Journal of Taphonomy, VOLUME 10 (ISSUE 3-4), 2012
  16. [16]
    "The Complex Carnivore-rich Assemblages from Furninha (Peniche, Portugal): a Multidisciplinary Approach" (PDF). Journal of Taphonomy.[permanent dead link]
  17. [17]
    Hunters of the Golden Age – article by João Zilhão Archived 2017-02-02 at the Wayback Machine published by the University of Bristol
  18. [18]
    "João Zilhão - Google Scholar Citations". scholar.google.com.
  19. [19]
    Museu Geológico
  20. [20]
    Picture of an unidentified plant (NOTE: the plant resembles a bunch of leafless gray branches whose roots penetrate into tiny cavities in the rock, as if they were feeding on nutrients concentrated in these small holes)
  21. [21]
    "What Plants Can Live in Caves?". Caveslime.
  22. [22]
    The film Arribas Archived 2017-06-05 at the Wayback Machine highlights the colors of the interior of the cave, the surprising harmony of its natural architecture and enacts aspects of the daily life of Neanderthals in a sequence of about three minutes
  23. [23]
    (pt) Lenda dos Passos de Dona Leonor Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine (The Legend of Dona Leonor's steps)
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