Video claims 75,000-year-old occupation at Pendejo Cave; findings remain disputed

The Roundtable Chronicles - Ep. 29
Source: The Roundtable Chronicles - Ep. 29 by Institute for Natural Philosophy

The video argues that Pendejo Cave contains evidence of humans occupying the Americas 75,000 years ago. That interpretation is not established: Richard MacNeish led the excavation, and the final report by MacNeish and Jane G. Libby documented artifacts in deposits assigned old radiocarbon ages; the cited summary specifically notes claimed levels around 25,000–31,000 years ago. A published study found 16 friction-skin impressions on fired clay nodules—not a fingerprint on bone. The cited record does not support claims of inscribed bones, a 30–70% “dubious” rate, universal exclusion of the cave evidence, or a MacNeish-pioneered “two-sided” excavation method.

Key facts

  • Richard S. MacNeish led the 1970s excavation of Pendejo Cave; he and Jane G. Libby published the final report in 1981, documenting stone artifacts and faunal remains.
  • The cited summary specifically notes MacNeish's claimed occupation levels of about 25,000–31,000 years ago. Claims of 75,000- and 50,000-year-old occupation and the association of artifacts with those dates remain disputed.
  • A published study reported 16 Late Pleistocene friction-skin impressions on clay nodules baked above 120°C, not a fingerprint chemically imprinted on bone.
  • The cited record does not substantiate bones with inscriptions, a 30–70% 'dubious' artifact rate, or a two-sided excavation method pioneered by MacNeish.
  • Disagreement over the early occupation evidence does not mean that every artifact and occupation level from Pendejo Cave has been rejected.

Related stories

Sources

http://www.utep.edu/leb/Pleistnm/sites/pendejocave.htmutep.edu
Is pendejo cave the oldest known prehistoric site in north ...neolithicarchitecture.com
Faunal remains in the cave had been dated to older than 50,000 years. The manufacture and dating of some of the chipped stones and other alleged artifacts ...
Pendejo Caveen.wikipedia.org
Pendejo Cave is a geological feature and archaeological site located in southern New Mexico about 20 miles east of Orogrande. A total of 111 chipped tools was ...
Pendejo Cave : Free Download, Borrow, and Streamingarchive.org
Pendejo Cave ; Publication date: 2003 ; Topics: Paleo-Indians -- New Mexico, Indians of North America -- New Mexico -- Antiquities, Excavations ( ...
Where Is the Pendejo Cave Located?worldatlas.com
The cave was discovered in 1978 by Archeologist Richard MacNeish, who claimed that human occupation of the cave dates back ten thousand years.
Pendejo Cave. Richard S. MacNeish , Jane G. Libbyjournals.uchicago.edu
This book is the final report of the excavations of Pendejo Cave. Located on the. Fort Bliss army installation in south-central New Mexico, the cave was ...
Richard MacNeish - The Peabodypeabody.andover.edu
At Pendejo Cave on the Fort Bliss military base in New Mexico he claimed even earlier dates, including occupation levels between 25,000 and 31, 000 years ago.
Late Pleistocene Human Friction Skin Prints from Pendejo ...semanticscholar.org
In the excavation of Pendejo Cave, New Mexico, 16 friction skin imprints were found in five stratified zones on clay nodules, baked at over 120°C, ...
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