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  Fa Hien Cave location in Sri Lanka | |
| Alternative name | Pahiyangala Cave |
|---|---|
| Location | district ofKalutara |
| Region | Sri Lanka |
| Coordinates | 6°36′6″N80°13′6″E / 6.60167°N 80.21833°E /6.60167; 80.21833 |
| Site notes | |
| Archaeologists | Suren Deraniyagala |
Fa Hien Cave,Faxian Cave, orPahiyangala Cave is situated in the district ofKalutara,Western Province,Sri Lanka and according to a rural legend, named after an alleged resident during historical times, namelyBuddhist monkFaxian, previously romanized as Fa Hien. However, there is no archaeological or historical evidence to support this legend.[1] Nonetheless, the site is of archaeological significance asLate Pleistocenehumanfossilizedskeletal remains were discovered in the cave's sediments during excavations in the 1960s, the 1980s and in 2013. This is the largest natural stone cave in South Asia. 3500 people can stay here at the same time. To see the size of the cave, you have to go inside and look outside. Prehistoric humans have lived here for 35000–60000 years.They used sea fish, salt, and shark teeth as ornaments. This limestone was formed by corrosion over hundreds of thousands of years.
In 1968 humanburial sites were uncovered inside the cave bySiran Upendra Deraniyagala of theSri Lankan Government Department of Archaeology, who undertook a second excavation campaign with assistant W. H. Wijepala in 1988. The findings mainly consisted ofmicrolith stone tools, remnants of prehistoric fireplaces and organic material, such asfloral and human remains.Radiocarbon dating indicates that the cave had been occupied from about 33,000 years ago, theLate Pleistocene andMesolithic to 4,750 years ago, theNeolithic in theMiddle Holocene. Human remains of the several sediment deposits were analyzed atCornell University and studied byKenneth A. R. Kennedy and graduate student Joanne L. Zahorsky.[2]
The oldest fragments of human bone fossils are attributed to three children, a juvenile and two adults that show evidence of secondaryburials. The bodies had been exposed todecomposition andscavengers and the bones were subsequently placed in graves. Additional fossil remains include those of another young child, dated to about 6,850 years BP and of a young woman (nicknamedKalu-Menika by archaeologists), dated to about 5,400 years BP. Both individuals were also recovered from secondary burials.
The discoveries allowedarchaeological andpaleontological comparative studies as the earliest occupants of Fa Hien, or Pahiyangala Cave lived during the same period asEuropeanCro-Magnon man and otherLate Pleistocenehominids in theEastern Hemisphere. Studies of teeth found in the cave indicate that the prehistoric population ofSri Lanka processed food by grinding nuts, seeds and grains in stonequerns and that they continued to maintain ahunter-gatherer lifestyle until about the 8th century BCE.Sri Lanka has yielded the earliest known microliths, which didn't appear inEurope until the Early Holocene.[3]
In June 2020 research carried out by theMax Planck Institute,Griffith University in Australia, and the Sri Lankan Government Department of Archaeology, showed that occupants of the Fa-Hien Lena cave had developedbow and arrow technology 48,000 BP. This is the oldest use of this technology outside of Africa. The researchers found items associated with freshwater fishing, as well as the working of fiber to make nets or clothing. Lead author of the study, Michelle Langley of Griffith University, said, "We also found clear evidence for the production of colored beads from mineral ochre and the refined making of shell beads traded from the coast, at a similar age to other 'social signaling' materials found in Eurasia and Southeast Asia, roughly 45,000 years ago."[4]
Other important Sri Lankan prehistoric sites at which human remains have been found include two other caves –Batadombalena (about 28,500 years old) near Kuruwita andBelilena nearKitulgala (about 12,000 years old) – and an open-air site, Bellanbandi Palassa in Rathnapura (about 6,000 years old).
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