In addition, human occupation in the Theopetra Cave can be continuously dated from the Middle Palaeolithic until the end of the Neolithic era.
This is essential because it helps researchers understand the prehistoric era in Greece better.
Excavations at the Theopetra cave began in 1987 under the direction of N. Kyparissi-Apostolika.
The Theopetra Cave is situated on the north-eastern side of a limestone hill, about 100 meters (330 feet) above the valley, overlooking the distant settlement of Theopetra, while the Pineios River branch Lethaios runs nearby.
According to scientists, the formation of the limestone hill occurred between 137 and 65 million years ago, during the Upper Cretaceous. Archaeological evidence indicates that human habitation of the cave began during the Middle Palaeolithic era, around 130,000 years ago.
The cave is located on the slopes of a limestone hill overlooking Theopetra village.
The cave itself has been described as roughly quadrilateral in shape with narrow niches on its edge and covers an area of around 500 sq meters (5380 sq ft). The Theopetra Cave has a wide aperture, which enables the light to penetrate easily into the interior of the cave.
The excavation of Theopetra Cave started in 1987 and lasted until 2007. Dr. Nina Kyparissi-Apostolika, who was the head of the Ephorate of Palaeoanthropology and Speleography while the excavations were conducted, oversaw this endeavor.
The Theopetra Cave was used by local shepherds as a temporary refuge for their sheep while the first archaeological excavations were done.
The Theopetra Cave was the first cave in Thessaly to be explored archaeologically, as well as the only cave in Greece with a continuous sequence of deposits from the Middle Palaeolithic until the end of the Neolithic era. This is crucial because it has helped archaeologists to acquire a better understanding of the transition between the Palaeolithic and Neolithic lifestyles on the Greek mainland.
The archaeological investigation of Theopetra Cave has yielded some intriguing findings. One of these, for instance, corresponds to the local climate during the cave’s occupation.
By performing micro-morphological examination on sediment samples from each archaeological stratum, archaeologists were able to discover that the cave’s occupants experienced both hot and cold periods. As a consequence of these climatic fluctuations, the population of the cave changed appropriately.
The remnants of a stone wall that formerly partly blocked the entrance to the Theopetra Cave are an additional remarkable discovery. Using a relatively new dating technique known as Optically Stimulated Luminescence, scientists were able to determine that this wall is around 23,000 years old.
The age of this wall, which correlates with the last glacial period, has prompted scholars to hypothesize that it was constructed by the cave’s residents to shelter them from the cold. It has been said that this is the earliest known construction created by humans in Greece, and maybe the whole globe.
A year prior to this astounding find, it was reported that at least three hominid footprints etched into the soft clay floor of a cave had been discovered.
On the basis of the size and form of the footprints, it has been hypothesized that they were created by many Neanderthal children between the ages of two and four who inhabited the cave during the Middle Palaeolithic period.
The Theopetra Cave was formally opened to the public in 2009, but was briefly closed the following year when the remnants of a stone wall were unearthed. Although the archaeological site was eventually reopened, it was closed again in 2016 for safety concerns, namely the possibility of landslides, and remains so to this day.
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