Altamura Man

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This individual was discovered in 1993 entombed in limestone in a cave in Altamura, Italy. Using DNA extracted from the bones sticking out from the limestone, researchers have found he was a Neanderthal who fell down a sinkhole around 150,000 years ago. He is thought to have starved to death after falling and badly injuring himself. Over thousands of years, the body decayed and the bones gradually became incorporated into the stalactites left behind by water dribbling down the cave walls. The DNA is apparently the oldest to ever be extracted from a Neanderthal.