Whether that work was done primarily at high altitude or at multiple elevations across a seasonal range is not determinable from the current evidence.

The Cave As Character

Throughout this article, Hourglass Cave has been described primarily in terms of its physical challenges — the narrowness, the mud, the cold, the darkness.

But the cave as a place has dimensions beyond its physical difficulty, and understanding those dimensions helps explain why the question of why the ancient man entered it is so compelling.

Caves occupy a distinctive place in human culture across the world and throughout history.

They are places of transition — between the outer world and the inner world, between the familiar and the unknown, between light and darkness.