‘Calpeia’ featured on National Geographic website

The discovery and analysis of the 7,500-year-old Neolithic skull of ‘Calpeia’ by the Gibraltar National Museum has been featured on the National Geographic website.

The article focuses on the advancements of DNA testing over the two decades after Calpeia was found and details the journey from discovery to producing a forensic reconstruction.

In 1996, a skull and bones were then in a cave near Europa Point and, following DNA analysis, they were found to be the oldest remnants of a modern female woman found in Gibraltar to date. Decades later she would be named ‘Calpeia’ by the Museum team.

A forensic reconstruction of Calpeia was unveiled last year and the article described how the Museum team worked for six months to create her “striking, lifelike visage.”

The DNA results showed Calpeia had lived around 5400 BC was slightly built, light-skinned, with dark hair and eyes, and she was lactose intolerant.

Featuring photos of Calpeia, Gibraltar and Gorham’s Cave, the article also discusses Calpeia’s ancestry and travels.

The full article can be read on: www.nationalgeographic.com/history/magazine/2020/05-06/face-7500-year-old-woman-reveals-gibraltar-earliest-humans/