Arma delle Manie

Arma delle Mànie, nestled on the Manie Plateau above Finale Ligure in Liguria, is one of the region’s key archaeological sites for understanding the life of Neanderthals in north-western Italy. The cave contains a long sequence of human occupation stretching back to the Middle Paleolithic, with layers that have preserved stone tools, animal bones, and even a Neanderthal tooth; a rare evidence of their presence in the Mediterranean corridor.

After more than forty years, a new research season began in 2025. The work is led by an international and multidisciplinary team from the University of Genoa, the University of Bologna, and the University of Montréal as part of the Last Neanderthals Project. The goal is to re-examine the site with modern methods and generate new scientific data.

The team is conducting detailed excavations and collecting samples for a range of advanced analyses, including sedimentary ancient DNA, ZooMS, radiocarbon dating, micromorphology, and high-resolution 3D mapping. This new phase of research aims to better understand how Neanderthals lived, hunted, and interacted with their environment along the Ligurian coast.