Neandertal man, molar

Human molar, lower right, well fossilised, found in the Neanderthal site of Cattìe (Maglie), in association with a large amount of fauna and Quina Mousterian industry findings.  It has an intact crown and a fractured root at the apical end; the enamel is covered with longitudinal and transversal cracks of a blackish colour. All the metric and morphological data and the radiological examination lead us to consider it a second or third molar of a Neanderthal individual, aged between 14 and 15 years, of an unidentified sex.  The association with the Quina Mousterian industry suggests a dating between 60 and 50 thousand years.
The most ancient ascertained evidence of the presence of man in the Salento can be led back to Neanderthal man. Teeth of individuals belonging to this species have been found, not only in the Cattìe dolin, but also in the area of Nardò (Grotta di Capelvenere of S.   Caterina and Grotta del Cavallo in the Uluzzo bay), and in S. Maria di Leuca (Grotta del Bambino).