While renovating his wine cellar in Gobelsburg (Austria), winemaker Andreas Pernerstorfer recently discovered mammoth bones 30,000 to 40,000 years old.
This discovery, described as an “archaeological sensation” by experts from the Austrian Archaeological Institute (ÖAI), is the most important made in Austria in more than a hundred years, specifies BBC this Wednesday.
Teeth before bones
“I thought it was just a piece of wood left by my grandfather,” the winemaker told Austrian radio ORF. It was only after digging a little deeper that he understood the full importance of his find. “I remembered my grandfather saying he found teeth in the past,” he testified. I immediately thought it was a mammoth. »
Since the surprising discovery, excavations at the site have been supported and led by archaeologists Thomas Einwögerer and Hannah Parow-Souchon of the ÖAI. In addition to the bones, they discovered stone objects and charcoal allowing them to date the objects unearthed. They determined that the remains are those of at least three mammoths, constituting a rare and valuable discovery for research.
A wealth of information
The scientists welcomed the future analyzes they would be able to carry out using modern survey techniques. Hannah Parow-Souchon also explained that the position of the bones could indicate that the mammoths had been trapped by hunters of the time. “We know that humans hunted mammoths, but we still know very little about how they did it,” she said.
This exceptional discovery will eventually be transferred to the Natural History Museum in Vienna (Austria). Researchers hope it will provide new information about the hunting of mammoths in the Stone Age and the interactions between humans and these giant animals.