An ancient cave in Poland turned out to be home to a group of Neanderthals
Scientists have discovered that the ancient Steinia cave in Poland was the place where a small group of Neanderthals lived. This is important because usually genetic data can be obtained from one person, but here for the first time it was possible to collect the whole group from one place and time.
Researchers have analysed ancient mitochondrial DNA from eight Neanderthal teeth found in the Steinya cave. According to their data, we are talking about at least seven individuals who lived about 100,000 years ago, north of the Carpathians.
Details
This makes the find particularly valuable. In most cases, scientists work either with single remains or with materials from different places and eras. In Stein, for the first time, it was possible to get a more complete picture of a small Neanderthal group from Central-Eastern Europe.
Genetic analyses showed that this group was related maternally to other Neanderthals from the Iberian Peninsula, south-eastern France and northern Caucasus. This suggests that such a lineage was once widespread and later disappeared or was supplanted by later Neanderthal lineages.
Also of particular interest was the fact that two teenage teeth and one adult tooth showed the same mitochondrial DNA. This could mean that these individuals were close maternal relatives.
Why it matters
The finding changes the way we think about the role of Central Eastern Europe in Neanderthal history. Previously often seen more as a periphery, the region now appears to be an important area of movement, contact and biological links between different groups.
In addition, the study shows that it is possible to reconstruct entire small communities from DNA, rather than just studying individual ancient people. This gives a more vivid and realistic picture of how Neanderthal populations were organised.
Background
The authors also emphasise that such ancient dating needs to be interpreted with care: when radiocarbon approaches the limits of its accuracy, it is particularly important to compare archaeology, genetics and dating with each other. It is this integrated approach that has made it possible to estimate the age of the Steiny group more accurately.
Source
The study is published in Current Biology (2026). The authors studied ancient mitochondrial DNA from teeth found in the Steinia Cave in Poland.