Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss.
, 13:219–234, Wien 2004
New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting from
Potočka zijalka (Slovenia)
Gerhard WithAlm*)
WIThAlM, G., 2004. New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting from Potočka zijalka (Slovenia). — Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch.
Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13:219–234, Wien.
Abstract
In this article new evidence for cave bear hunting of Pa-
leolithic man is given, based upon the inding of a right
shoulder blade with a pathology that indicates an artiicial
traumatic origin. It is argumented and supposed that this
wound was caused by a bone peak.
Keywords: Potočka zijalka, cave bear, hunting, patho­
logy
Zusammenfassung
In diesem Artikel wird ein rechtes Schulterblatt beschrie-
ben, das als weiteres Indiz für die Bejagung des Höhlen-
bären durch den paläolithischen Menschen gelten kann.
Es weist eine Verletzung auf, die, wie argumentiert wird,
allem Anschein nach durch eine Knochenspitze hervor-
gerufen wurde.
Schlüsselwörter: Potočka zijalka, Höhlenbär, Jagd,
Pathologie
Izvleček
V prispevku je avtor opisal desno lopatico, ki bi lahko
služila kot dokaz, da so ljudje v stari kameni dobi lovili
tudi jamskega medveda. Lopatica kaže poškodbo, ki bi jo
lahko povzročila koščena konica mladečkega tipa (koščena
konica s solidno bazo).
Ključne besede: Potočka zijalka, jamski medved, lov,
patologija
1. Introduction
The Potočka zijalka is a well­known site in the northeast-
ern part of the Slovenian Alps. Its entrance opens in the
southwestern slope of the Olševa at a height of about 1700
*) Dr. GErhArD WIThAlM, Institute of Palaeontology, Uni-
versity of Vienna, Althanstr. 14, A-1090 Vienna, Austria.
e-mail: gerhard.withalm@univie.ac.at
m a.s.l. This site is well known since a long time and was
excavated since the 1930ies. Excavations started with
Dr. Grosz, an Austrian doctor of medicine, who started
to collect and to excavate material in the years 1926 and
1928. He also carried out a detailed study on the cranial
anatomy of the cave bear which is still unpublished. For
a more detailed description of the curriculum of Dr.
Grosz see UcIK (2001). This material is now housed in
the “Kärntner Landesmuseum” and was used for several
publications during the last years see PAchEr (1998b)
WIThAlM (1998, 1999).
The irst oficial excavations took place in 1928 and were
carried out by Srečko Brodar, a teacher from the gym-
nasium in Celje. This campaign lasted till 1935 with an
annual duration of several weeks. During this time incred-
ible amounts of sediment were searched through and an
impressing amount of material was brought to the museum.
Based on the abundance of canines a MNI of about 1500
individuals was estimated, see BroDAr, S. (1938:155).
Only two years ago the material of the Potočka zijalka was
reviewed and published by PAchEr (1998a).
2. Material
The material consists of a fragmented right shoulder blade
of an adult cave bear with the inventory-number PZ 313.
It was found in site 2, sqare Q6 in a depth of 350­360 cm
below zero.
3. Methods
The scapula was examined without any technical aid as
well as with a stereomicroscope, Leica MZ12. A computed
tomography was made with a Philips Secura cT and a
3D­model of the ROI (region of interest) was calculated.
The scan was taken with the following parameters, given
in table 1. The single slices as well as the 3D-model were
printed on a laser imaging system. Moreover a illing of
the channel was made of silicone-plaster in the Dept. of
Preparation at the Institute of Palaeontology, University
of Vienna, which was used for comparison and for the
photomontage in plate 4.
220
Table 1: Parameters used for scanning the shoulder-blade PZ
313, Potočka zijalka (Slovenia).
Parameter Setting
Field of View (FOV) 143 mm
Matrix 512 x 512 pixels
Thickness of slices 1.5 mm
Scan-time 4.0 s
Voltage 120 kV
Amperage 150 mAs
Angulation of Gantry 0°
4. Description
This shoulder blade of an adult cave bear was fragmented
and reitted during preparation works. The measurments
according to von den DrIESch (1982) are: HS: 36 cm, GLP:
10.8 cm, LG: 8.2 cm, BG: 5.8 cm.
The areas above and below the spine, pars supra- et infra-
spinatus scapulae, are incomplete due to the fragmenta-
tion mentioned before. There are small elliptical and two
dot-like prominent areas on the glenoid cavity as well as a
small circle shaped lytic area at the deepest point thereof.
The spine itself is unchanged with exception of a fracture in
its last medial third. The most interesting feature is a deep
hole, a channel of approximately of approximately 4 cm
length and of oval diameter perforating the shoulder blade
on its medial part in direct continuation of the spine, close
to the insertion of the rhomboideus minor muscle, see ig.
1 and plates 1, 2 and 3. In its longitudinal axis this chan-
nel is of approximately conical shape, becoming narrower
from the dorsal to the costal surface of the shoulder blade.
The bone shows the typical signs of intensive remodelling
on the channel’s inside. It is directed from medio-dorsal
to oro-costal and meets the distal end of the spine with
an angle of about 115°, reading clockwise and beginning
with the glenoidal part of the spine. on the dorsal side the
region around the channel is mechanically eroded so that
there is no possibility to describe structures of this part of
Figure 1: Sketchy drawing of a right shoulder blade with the
position of the channel marked by a cross in a circle on the margo
medialis scapulae.
Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004
the bone. There are no signs of fractures that could have
been caused by the same event that caused the forma-
tion of the channel. The inner wall of the channel is not
smooth but rough; it consists of nodules and bars that were
formed in the course of the process of healing. The animal
survived this injury for a longer period of time so that a
defect healing took place; the channel was not illed with
new built bone material. Based upon its shape, position
and the obvious lack of any other structures, which could
be indicative for another genesis, it can be assumed that
this channel is of traumatic origin.
Selected slices from the cT-scan are showing the inner
structure of the pathology and reveal a more dense re-
gion of remodelled bone around the channel without the
typical spongious structure of cancellous bone, see plate
3. A reconstruction from cT-data shows this part of the
shoulder-blade and the channel itself, the latter from two
different points of view, see plate 5.
5. Discussion
There was and still is a big variety of theories concerning
the relationship between man and cave bear but there are
only a few hints in literature that can be seen as a real
proof for hunting activities of Palaeolithic man. For a more
detailed listing of cases and for a discussion on this sub-
ject see PAchEr (1997:287 ff.). These bears have recently
undergone a taxonomic rework (see rABEDEr et al., 2002)
and those from Potočka zijalka are now classiied as Ursus
ingressus, see rABEDEr et al. (2004).
There is for example one lumbal vertebra from the well-
Figure 2: Thoracic vertebra with a trace of hunting-activity from
the Hohle Fels near Schelklingen (Germany). Picture is taken
from: www.schelklingen/de/vereine/museum.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting …
Figure 3: Mounted skeleton of a cave bear. Please note the position of the shoulder blade, which makes an attack on a hibernating
animal quite unlikely. Drawing by N. Frotzler, Institute of Palaeontology.
known “Drachenhöhle” near Mixnitz in Styria (Austria)
showing a lesion on the lateral side of the vertebral body
with the tip of the weapon in it, compare to SchIMon
(1989:19). A very similar injury is known from the Hohle
Fels near Schelklingen in Germany where the tip of a
stone tool is stuck into the processus transversus, see ig.
Figure 4: romantic illustration of a cave bear hunt taken from
“Rulaman ­ Erzählung aus der Zeit des Höhlenmenschen und des
Höhlenbären“ of David Friedrich Weinland (1829­1915).
221
2. Here it is assumed that the pathology in question was
caused during a bear hunt by a weapon. Its position on the
medial edge of the shoulder blade, close to the insertion
of the rhomboideus minor, can be easily targeted when
approaching a bear standing on all four legs or one that
stands on its hind legs from the side. The shoulder blade
that is dealt with in this article shows traces of a serious
wounding that healed and was survived for a long period
of time. It was not caused by a comparably small weapon
like an arrow (which was not invented at this time) that hit
the animal but its size and shape indicates that it needed a
bigger weapon like a spear. Moreover the over-all shape
of this traumatic structure closely resembles the famous
and numerous artefacts that were produced in this cave:
the bone-points with solid basis and of other typology.
It seems thus very likely that a bone-point perforated
the animal’s shoulder blade. After the attack the weapon
was taken away without breaking the bone-point, as
there are no rests of such an artefact. The bear was not
too severely wounded or even killed and so it healed
under the formation of the structure, which is dealt with
in here. Its obvious traces of inlammation show that
the inlammation remained a local process and did not
spread over to other regions. The position and direction
of the channel indicates that the weapon hit the animal’s
shoulder blade from behind and that it was guided from
down- to upside.
For comparison see igs. 1 and 3, the latter showing a cave
bear on four legs. It is thus more likely that the cave bear
was standing on four legs or on its hind-legs when being
wounded, reminding on the pictures of a cave bear hunt
in the style of hoWEll (1969:126) and BUrIAn & WolF
(1991) or, even better, the one which is given in ig. 4
222 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004
where there are three broken spears in the bear’s right
side. In any way it’s one of the rare evidences of direct
“interaction” of man and bear, even if this hunt was not
so successful for our predecessors.
6. Acknowledgements
I am indebted to the clinic of radiology of the „Allgemeines
Krankenhaus der Stadt Wien“ for the cT-scan and to the De-
partment of Preparation at the Institute of Palaeontology for
the mold of this interesting structure. I am also indebted to
Dr. Irena Debeljak (Ljubljana) for taking the measurements
of this specimen.
7. References
BroDAr, S., 1938. Das Paläolithikum in Jugoslawien.
— Quartär, i:140–172, Berlin.
BUrIAn, Z. & WolF, J., 1991. Menschen der Urzeit. 8th ed.,
Ausgburg (Weltbild Verlag).
DrIESch, A. von den, 1982. Das Vermessen von Tierkno-
chen aus Vor­ und Früheschichtlichen Siedlungen.
— Eigenverlag des Institutes für Paläoanatomie,
Domestikationsforschung und Geschichte der Tier-
medizin, 2. Aul., München.
hoWEll, C.F., 1969. L‘Homme Préhistorique. Amsterdam
(Time­Life).
PAchEr, M., 1997. Der Höhlenbärenkult aus ethnologi-
scher Sicht. — Wiss. Mitt. Niederösterr. Landesmu-
seum, 10:251–375, Wien.
PAchEr, M., 1998a. Die Höhlenbärenreste der Sammlung
Groß aus der Uschowa Höhle (Potočka zijalka) /
Slowenien). — Carinthia II, Jg. 188/108:633–642,
Klagenfurt.
PAchEr, M., 1998b. Die pleistozäne Höhlenfundstelle
Potočka zijalka in Slowenien. — Geol.­Paläont. Mitt.
Innsbruck, 23:67–76, Innsbruck.
rABEDEr, G., hoFrEITEr, M., nAGEl, D., PääBo, S. &
WIThAlM, G., 2002. Die neue Taxonomie der alpinen
Höhlenbären / A new Taxonomy of Alpine Cave
Bears. — [in:] roSEnDAhl, W., MorGAn, M. & lóPEZ
corrEA, M. (eds.). Cave­Bear­Researches/Höhlen­
Bären­Forschungen. — Abh. Karst u. Höhlenkde.,
34:68–69, München.
rABEDEr, G., hoFrEITEr, M., nAGEl, D., PääBo, S. &
WIThAlM, G., 2004. New Taxa of Alpine Cave Bears
(Ursidae, Carnivora). — Docum. Lab. Géol. Lyon,
(in press).
SchIMon, F., 1989. Pathologie des Höhlenbären. — un-
publ. Dissertation, Fakultät für Naturwissenschaften,
Universität Wien.
UcIK, F.H., 2001. Dr. med. Josef Carl Groß jun. (12. 12.
1907 ­ 1. 1. 1967) – Von vielen fast vergessen – von
den Nachbarn verfemt – von der Wissenschaft bei-
nahe totgeschwiegen. — Carinthia II, 191:73–82,
Klagenfurt.
WIThAlM, G., 1998. Ausgewählte Pathologien aus dem
Material der Potočka zijalka (Kärntner Landesmu-
seum, Sammlung Gross). — Abstracts, 4th Int. cave
Bear Symposium:34–35, Velenje.
WIThAlM, G., 1999. Ausgewählte Pathologien aus dem
Material der Potočka zijalka (Kärntner Landesmuse-
um, Sammlung Gross). — Geol. zbor., 14:107–126,
Ljubljana.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 223
224 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004

PlATE 1

Fragmented right shoulder blade of an adult cave bear, PZ 313

Fig. a Facies costalis, arrow indicating the inner opening of the channel.
Fig. b Facies posterior: the position of the channel is marked by a light grey triangle.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 225

PlATE 1

B
226 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004

PlATE 2

Fragmented right shoulder blade of an adult cave bear, PZ 313

Fig. a Facies posterior, medial part of the shoulder blade.

Fig. b Close­up of the channel‘s entrance on the facies posterior.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 227

PlATE 2

B
228 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004

PlATE 3

Fragmented right shoulder blade of an adult cave bear, PZ 313

10 slices, D3/66 – D3/77, of 1.5 mm thickness through the area around the channel and the channel itself by
means of computed tomography. Please note the dense bone the lamina externa consists of, and the more light
and homogenous nodules of remodelled bone of the channel‘s inner wall and in the area around.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 229

PlATE 3
230 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004

PlATE 4

Fragmented right shoulder blade of an adult cave bear, PZ 313

Fig. a Medial part with a bone peak in the channels‘s entrance for illustration.
Fig. b Reconstruction of the bone­point based on the channel‘s endocast, from lateral (1) and from dorsal (2).
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 231

PlATE 4

B1 B2
232 Mitt. Komm. Quartärforsch. Österr. Akad. Wiss., 13, Wien, 2004

PlATE 5

Fragmented right shoulder blade of an adult cave bear, PZ 313

Fig. a Virtual section through the medial part of the shoulderblade, showing the position and direction of the
channel.
Fig. b Reconstruction of the channel itself from two different points of view. (1) from fossa supraspinata,
(2) from fossa infraspinata.
WIThAlM, G., New Evidence for Cave Bear Hunting … 233

PlATE 5

B1 B2