Europe

Narrow, worn stairs beneath the 11th-century Pembroke Castle in Wales lead into a shadowy cavern where early humans once sheltered from an environment populated with hippopotamus, mammoth, and woolly rhinoceros. Small excavations in 2024 revealed artifacts and tools used in the Upper Paleolithic Period. Currently, archaeologists at the University of Aberdeen are beginning a five-year project to chart the environmental conditions during early human occupation in Britain in greater detail. Dr. Rob Dinnis, project director, is enthusiastic about the project’s possibilities. “Despite the limited work done so far, we can already say that Wogan Cavern is a truly remarkable site,” said Dr. Dinnis. “Not only is there extremely rare evidence for early Homo sapiens, but there are also hints at