Forbes' Quarry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Forbes' Quarry |
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Entrance to Forbes' Quarry cave showing a World War II pillbox
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| Location | North face of the Rock of Gibraltar, Upper Rock Nature Reserve, Gibraltar |
| Length | 22 cm (8.7 in) |
| Geology | Limestone |
| Entrances | 1 |
Forbes' Quarry is a famous cave located on the northern side of the Rock of Gibraltar. It is part of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve, a special protected area in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar.
During the 1800s, this area was used as a quarry to get stone. This stone was needed to make the military buildings and walls of Gibraltar stronger. While workers were quarrying, they discovered a limestone cave. This cave became very important because of a major discovery made there in 1848.
It was in this cave that Captain Edmund Flint found the skull of an adult female Neanderthal. This was only the second time a Neanderthal fossil had ever been found, making Forbes' Quarry a significant site in human history.
What's in a Name?
Forbes' Quarry gets its name from an old military building called Forbes' Battery. This building was built in the 1700s and is located right above the cave.
History of Discoveries
Finding the Neanderthal Skull
In 1848, Captain Edmund Flint of the Royal Navy discovered an ancient skull inside Forbes' Quarry. This skull is now known as Gibraltar 1. Captain Flint was the secretary of the Gibraltar Museum Society, and he showed his amazing find to the society on March 3, 1848.
At the time, people didn't fully understand what this skull meant. It had some unusual features. It wasn't until 1864 that its true importance was realized. This was eight years after more Neanderthal remains were found in the Neander Valley in Germany. The German discovery gave the species its name, Homo neanderthalensis.
The skull from Forbes' Quarry got a lot of attention from important scientists in Great Britain. In September 1864, it was shown at a meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. Even Charles Darwin, a very famous scientist, was curious about the skull. He was too sick to go to the meeting, so other scientists brought the skull to him. Darwin later described the skull as "wonderful."
Scientists have studied the skull from Forbes' Quarry and believe it belonged to an adult female Neanderthal. She was likely over 40 years old when she died. This is suggested by how worn down her teeth were. Also, she had a bony growth inside her forehead, which is sometimes seen in older modern humans, especially after menopause.
When the skull was found, methods for dating ancient fossils were very new. So, it was hard to know exactly how old the skull was. However, another Neanderthal fossil found in Gibraltar (Gibraltar 2) has been dated to be between 30,000 and 50,000 years old. Some scientists believe Neanderthals might have lived in Gibraltar until about 28,000 years ago, which would make them some of the last Neanderthals on Earth.
The Quarry's Impact
During the 1800s, a lot of stone was taken from Forbes' Quarry. This stone was used to build and strengthen the military defenses of Gibraltar. This quarrying activity removed much of the natural slope around the cave.
Sadly, the cave where the Neanderthal skull was found was almost completely destroyed by the quarrying. This left very little evidence for scientists to study later on.
