Vela Spila Cave

Vela Spila is a large elliptical cave above the town of Vela Luka on Korcula island, Croatia, measuring 40 metres long, 17 metres high, and 40 metres wide. One of Europe's most important prehistoric sites, it contains a stratigraphic sequence spanning from the Late Upper Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age, with evidence of seasonal human presence from around 20,000 BC. Among only five European sites with Palaeolithic fired clay figurines, its 36 ceramic artifacts date to 17,500-15,000 years ago. Mesolithic child burials and secondary adult inhumations found here are rare examples of mortuary practices from that period.