Jump to content
Join the Unexplained Mysteries community today! It's free and setting up an account only takes a moment.
- Sign In or Create Account -

Did Humans Hunt Cave Lions for Throw Rugs?


Claire.

Recommended Posts

Humans May Have Hunted Cave Lions to Extinction—For Throw Rugs

It turns out safari-going bros worried about their masculinity aren’t the only ones who collect animal skin rugs. New research finds that our ancestors may also have had a propensity for advertising their hunting prowess by preserving the furs of their kills. Their prize trophy, however, was no meager lion but a creature called a "cave lion." These formidable predators once roamed the forests from Europe to the Canadian Yukon, hunting reindeer, goats and (now extinct) wild cattle. At more than 11 feet long and weighing around 700 pounds, they made today’s African lions look like half-grown kittens. And, at least to some Upper Paleolithic people, they sure must have looked good as rugs.

Sadly, cave lions disappeared from the scene around 14,000 years ago. No one knows exactly why, but researchers have long suspected that man played some role in their demise. That hypothesis now looks even more likely: A paper published today in the journal PLOS ONE reports that newly discovered cave lion claw bones show signs of being modified by a technique similar to that used by modern hunters to skin prey.

The new finds suggest that humans not only hunted cave lions, but also valued them enough to bling out their homes with the predator’s full skin—claws and all. “The (cave) lion is a difficult and dangerous animal to hunt, and it probably played an important role as a trophy and for use in rituals,” says lead author Marián Cueto, a zooarcheologist at the University of Cantabria in Spain. “There are many cases in history in which different societies used carnivore pelts as a symbol of power.”

Read more: Smithsonian

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I imagine they did only much later in history after they get them for warmth .

Edited by docyabut2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

CC: Clair - song, "Lion's Den," dedicated to this thread.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.