A new study led by IPHES-CERCA and published in Scientific Reports provides evidence of 5,700-year-old human cannibalism in El Mirador cave, Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos, Spain. The research shows that the event occurred in the context of a violent clash between Late Neolithic herder communities.
The remains of at least eleven individuals—children, adolescents, and adults—were uncovered. They had been skinned, defleshed, disarticulated, fractured, cooked, and consumed. The bones show signs of systematic cannibalism, with no sign of ritual or funerary intent. Researchers think the event was most likely the outcome of intergroup violence, possibly between locals and other farming communities or newcomers.
Dr. Palmira Saladié, lead researcher from IPHES-CERCA and Universitat Rovira i Virgili, pointed out the complexity of the interpretation of cannibalism. “Cannibalism is one of the most complex behaviors to interpret, due to the inherent difficulty of understanding the act of humans consuming other humans. Moreover, in many cases, we lack all the necessary evidence to associate it with a specific behavioral context. Finally, societal biases tend to interpret it invariably as an act of barbarism,” she explained.
The research team also included Dr. Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo of the Institute of Archaeology–Mérida (CSIC–Junta de Extremadura) and affiliated with IPHES-CERCA, and Francesc Marginedas (also of IPHES-CERCA and URV). The study forms part of a broader interdisciplinary research project on prehistoric violence and funerary rituals within the Atapuerca project, supported by Spain’s Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities.
Human remains were found in two sections of the cave and were remarkably well preserved. Taphonomic analysis showed clear cut marks, marrow extraction, burning, and human bite marks. Isotopic analysis (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) revealed that the individuals were locals. Radiocarbon dating places the event between 5,700 and 5,570 years ago, in the Late Neolithic, just before the cave was converted for funerary purposes.
“This was neither a funerary tradition nor a response to extreme famine,” Francesc Marginedas stated. “The evidence points to a violent episode, given how quickly it all took place—possibly the result of conflict between neighboring farming communities.”
The findings refer to the deliberate elimination of an entire family group and their consumption. “Conflict and the development of strategies to manage and prevent it are part of human nature,” Rodríguez-Hidalgo explained. “Ethnographic and archaeological records show that even in less stratified, small-scale societies, violent episodes can occur in which enemies were consumed as a form of ultimate elimination.”
The researchers compared the case to other Neolithic massacres in Europe, such as Talheim (Germany) and Els Trocs (Spain), but said El Mirador offers clearer signs of systematic consumption. The same patterns have been found at Fontbrégoua Cave in France and Herxheim in Germany.
El Mirador is not new to such findings. Previous research at the site had already recorded a Bronze Age case of cannibalism, dating to around 4,600 to 4,100 years ago. This new evidence shows that the practice existed earlier, during the Late Neolithic.
“The recurrence of these practices at different moments in recent prehistory makes El Mirador a key site for understanding prehistoric human cannibalism and its relationship to death, as well as possible ritual or cultural interpretations of the human body within the worldview of those communities,” Saladié concluded.
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