Castlepook’s Marked Reindeer Femur
Archived: 8 September 2026
Abstract
Around 31,973 BCE, Ireland was part of a climatically unstable, open Ice Age landscape, with changing coastlines, ice conditions and access routes. Cave faunas show that reindeer, mammoths, giant deer, bears, wolves, hyaenas and smaller cold-adapted animals occupied the island intermittently. At Castlepook Cave, County Cork, a reindeer femur bears a deep mark possibly made by a stone tool during butchery, potentially indicating an early human visit. However, disturbed deposits, uncertain dating and absence of associated tools, hearths or settlements prevent confirmation of occupation. The find prompts further research into Ireland’s earliest, fragile evidence of human presence in deep prehistory.