Beyond the walls: the design and development of the Petralona Cave virtual museum utilising 3D technologies

The Petralona Cave, which local inhabitants discovered by chance in 1959, is a remarkable natural and cultural landmark close to the village of Petralona, in the Chalkidiki peninsula of Greece. The site has gained global recognition for the discovery of a remarkably well-preserved Palaeolithic human skull, unearthed in 1960; it also holds archaeological and palaeontological significance. In this paper, the researchers introduce the Petralona Cave Virtual Museum: an innovative project whose mission is to increase public awareness and comprehension of the site. Our approach goes beyond mere replication of the physical museum located close to the cave; instead, the objective is to create an independent and comprehensive experience that is accessible to all visitors, irrespective of their ability to visit the site in person. Our methodology involved the documentation of the site and its history, analysis of user requirements, development of use cases to steer the design process, as well as architectural designs creation, itineraries and findings digitisation, and architectural structure finalisation. The Virtual Museum provides a well-organised frame structure that serves as an efficient gateway to the content, making navigation easy for visitors. Thanks to various presentation methods, including videos, high-quality images, interactive maps, animated content, interactive 3D models, plus searchable item libraries, among others, users are empowered to create a highly personalised navigation plan; thus the Virtual Museum experience is comparable to visiting the physical museum or cultural site. Cutting-edge digitisation techniques were employed to create highly detailed 3D models of the site. The Petralona Cave Virtual Museum is expected to offer an immersive experience, engaging diverse audiences; the interactive and educational exploration provides highly innovative access to archaeological knowledge. The visibility of the Petralona site is amplified and there is a significant contribution to knowledge dissemination about this important cultural heritage site

Micromorphology and geochimicals analysis of units I and III of Kalamakia Cave. (Laconia, Greece)

International audienceThe Upper Pleistocene site of Kalamakia Cave present a Mousterian industry earlier than isotopic stage 5. Unit I is formed by a stalagmite. The study of the isotopic composition (8 O) of the stalagmite show that it had recorded climatic variations during it formation. Unit III is formed by a sandy loam dune which contains white crust intercalations and which is covered by little stalagmites. The micromorphology study of the white crust reveal their calcitic nature and their vegetal origin.Le site du Pléistocène supérieur de la grotte de Kalamakia présente une industrie moustérienne postérieure au stade isotopique 5. L'ensemble I est constitué par un pilier stalagmitique. L'étude de la composition isotopique (8 O) de la stalagmite a montré que celle ci a enregistré les variations climatique qui se sont produites durant sa croissance. L'ensemble III est constitué par une dune sablo-argileuse contenant des intercalions de croûtes blanches et recouvert par des petites stalagmites. L'étude micromorphologique des croûtes blanches révèle leur nature carbonatée et leur origine végétale

New Neanderthal remains from Kalamakia cave, Mani peninsula, Southern Greece

The Kalamakia Middle Paleolithic site, a karstic cave on the western Mani peninsula, Greece, was excavated from 1993 until 2006 by an interdisciplinary team from the Ephoreia of Paleoanthropology and Speleology (Greek Ministry of Culture) and the Musée National d'Histoire Naturelle (Paris). The site is dated to between ca. 100,000 (U / Th) and >39,000 (AMS 14C) kya and has yielded Mousterian lithics and rich faunal remains, including several carnivores, small vertebrates and shellfish. The site has also yielded fourteen human specimens from several layers. These include 10 isolated teeth, a cranial fragment and three postcranial elements. The Kalamakia human remains represent at least eight individuals, including two subadults. One specimen shows clear carnivore modification marks, suggesting that some of the remains were brought into the cave by carnivores. Additional, anthropogenic, modifications in the form of interproximal grooves, are present on two of the isolated teeth. The Kalamakia remains from all stratigraphic levels can be identified as Neanderthal on the basis of diagnostic morphology. A mixed habitat is suggested by our analysis of dental wear (Occlusal Fingerprint Analysis) and microwear (Occlusal Texture Microwear Analysis), in agreement with the faunal and palynological analyses of the site. These new fossils significantly expand the Neanderthal sample known from Greece. Together with the human fossils from Lakonis and Apidima, the Kalamakia human remains add to the growing evidence of a strong Neanderthal presence in the Mani region during the late Pleistocene

New Neanderthal remains from Mani peninsula, Southern Greece: The Kalamakia Middle Paleolithic cave site

The Kalamakia cave, a Middle Paleolithic site on the western coast of the Mani peninsula, Greece, was excavated in 1993–2006 by an interdisciplinary team from the Ephoreia of Paleoanthropology and Speleology (Greek Ministry of Culture) and the Muséum national d\u27Histoire naturelle (Paris). The site is dated to between ca. 100,000 and \u3e39,000 years BP (Before Present) and has yielded Mousterian lithics, a rich fauna, and human remains from several layers. The latter include 10 isolated teeth, a cranial fragment and three postcranial elements. The remains represent at least eight individuals, two of them subadults, and show both carnivore and anthropogenic modifications. They can be identified as Neanderthal on the basis of diagnostic morphology on most specimens. A diet similar to that of Neanderthals from mixed habitat is suggested by our analysis of dental wear (occlusal fingerprint analysis) and microwear (occlusal texture microwear analysis), in agreement with the faunal and palynological analyses of the site. These new fossils significantly expand the Neanderthal sample known from Greece. Together with the human specimens from Lakonis and Apidima, the Kalamakia human remains add to the growing evidence of a strong Neanderthal presence in the Mani region during the Late Pleistocene