Cave 338 identified as humanity's earliest copper mine
Updated
Updated · Gizmodo · May 5
Cave 338 identified as humanity's earliest copper mine
8 articles · Updated · Gizmodo · May 5
The study places malachite processing there 5,500 years ago at 2,235 metres in the Pyrenees, with hearths, jewellery and an 11-year-old child's remains among the finds.
Researchers say repeated, likely intermittent visits spanned about 4,000 years, challenging assumptions that prehistoric communities only briefly used such high-altitude environments.
Excavations in 2017 and from 2021 continue until summer, as archaeologists test whether the cave was used to extract copper from malachite rather than as a permanent settlement.
Was this high-altitude cave a simple mining camp or a sacred site for rituals involving metal and death?
How was knowledge of this remote copper site passed down for four millennia without any written language?
Cave 338: Uncovering 5,500 Years of Intensive Copper Smelting and Rituals in the High Pyrenees
Overview
A landmark 2026 study revealed Cave 338 in the Pyrenees as Europe's oldest high-altitude mining camp, with human presence dating back 6,000 years and peak copper processing between 5,500 and 3,000 years ago. Miners sourced malachite ore from nearby and distant locations, transporting it over rugged terrain to the site, where they used advanced hearth techniques under challenging conditions. The discovery also uncovered human remains suggesting funerary use and symbolic artifacts like a shell pendant linking the site to Mediterranean trade networks. This finding reshapes our view of the Pyrenees as a vital resource hub and highlights the complex social and technological adaptations of prehistoric mountain communities.