Peștera Muierilor

The Women's Cave takes its name from a tradition that women and children sheltered here while the men were away, and it has been known and entered for centuries. Its scientific importance came later: human remains found in the cave, including a skull, have been dated to roughly 35,000 years ago, making them among the oldest modern human remains yet found in Europe, and genetic work on them has fed directly into research on the earliest European populations. Cave bear bones were found here in quantity as well. The visitor route runs along a lit gallery on one of four levels, past stalactites, curtains and a few named formations, and takes about forty-five minutes with a guide. The cave sits above the Galbenul gorge in the wooded foothills north of Târgu Jiu, and the drive up is attractive in its own right.

History

The archaeologist Constantin S. Nicolăescu-Plopșor excavated the cave in 1951-1953 and 1955, and the human skull came to light in 1952; radiocarbon dating gave it 30,150 ± 800 years, an absolute age of between 30,000 and 40,000 years, while the individual known as Peștera Muierii 1 is put at about 35,000 years before present. The cave also holds abundant remains of cave bears (Wikipedia, Peștera Muierilor).

What's there

• The lit gallery - the accessible level with formations and interpretive stops.
• Bone deposits - cave bear remains visible in parts of the system.
• The gorge setting - the Galbenul valley below the entrance.
• The archaeology story - explained on the tour and at the entrance.

When to go

Year-round; the interior holds a steady low temperature, so a jacket matters even in August. Tours run at set times and fill on summer weekends and Romanian holidays. Weekdays outside July and August are quiet.

Before you go

The famous human remains are not on display in the cave; they are held in scientific collections, and the tour tells the story rather than showing the finds. Lighting is basic and the visit is short. The paths inside are damp and uneven in places. Guide commentary is often only in Romanian.

Nearby

Polovragi monastery and the Oltăț gorge lie east; Târgu Jiu with its Brâncuși ensemble is south.

Key facts