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Researchers from the University of Alcalá and the Autonomous University of Barcelona have clarified a discovery first made in the 19th century. They confirmed that this pair of esparto grass sandals is even older than the footwear found in Armenia in 2008, which is dated to about 5,500 years ago.
Artifacts from the Bat Cave
A total of 76 items were uncovered in the remote Cueva de los Murciélagos (or “Bat Cave”) located in southern Andalusia. Some of these artifacts are around 9,500 years old. Among them were a set of woven baskets and simple wooden tools, including a hammer and a sharpened stick.
All the artifacts are remarkably well preserved, the Daily Mail reports. The cave’s cool, dry airflow has kept humidity low for millennia, limiting bacterial activity and helping protect the items.
Researchers think the sandals belonged to a person whose remains were found nearby.
The History of the Discovery
The sandals and other items were first discovered in 1831 by a farmer collecting bat guano for fertilizer (guano refers to accumulated seabird and bat droppings). In the mid-19th century, the artifacts were examined and described by Manuel de Góngora. After his death, the materials were transferred to the National Archaeological Museum of Madrid. Scientists tried to date the sandals over many years, but only recently did radiocarbon dating establish their age. The sandals turned out to be about 2,000 years older than previously thought.
Maria Herrero Otal, a researcher at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, called the pair the “oldest and best-preserved” plant-fiber artifact found in southern Europe.
The findings were published in the journal Science.
