The Bear Cult Hypothesis

The curious arrangement of Cave Bear skulls in paleolithic sites has led some historians to argue for the existence of an ancient Cave Bear cult among Neanderthals. Archaeological evidence for bear worship has been found in numerous caves across Western Eurasia including Drachenloch cave (Dragon’s Lair) in Switzerland where 30,000 cave bear skeletons were found.

The Altar of Drachenloch

There is absolutely no doubt that we are dealing here with an intentional storage of hunting trophies by the prehistoric people within the framework of a primitive cult of hunting and sacrifice… This assumption is justified by the altar-like stone building where the most important skeleton parts, skulls, and the largest limb bones were stored.

— Emil Bachler, 1921 [1]

The excavators of Dracheloch, Emil Bächler and Karl Hörmann, cited the traditions of circumpolar peoples when arguing for the existence of a paleolithic bear-cult. They believed prehistoric peoples may have venerated the skulls of slain animals and sought protection from their spirits [2,3].

Headhunting Rites & Bear Worship

When a cave bear was slain, it was dismembered on the spot and brought in pieces to the hunting station. Probably from the start the beast’s head, with fur and limbs attached, was treated with special honours. We know nothing about the ceremonies conducted in front of, or inside, the cave. The finds do tell us, however, that the undamaged head — that is, with brain intact — was sometimes carefully deposited in the dark interior of the cave, behind the hunters’ living quarters, in a covered, altar-like stone chest. More often, the undamaged skull, together with one or several equally undamaged long bones, was deposited in the most hidden recesses of the cave, in secret niches or clefts of the rock, or inside artificial stone formations designed to protect the skull from destruction. We do not know whether the flesh was disposed of as a result of exposure in the open or in the course of a sacrificial feast. But it is quite clear from the finds that the centre of the ritual was not the head or skull or long bones in themselves, but those most prized delicacies of all hunters, the brain and marrow. These precious parts of the animal were offered to the divine dispenser of hunting fortune in token of thanks for benefits received and to entreat success in future expeditions. The frequent orientation of the remains towards the exit may well mean that this deity was believed to abide, somewhere in the universe, beyond the cave.

— Johannes Maringer, 1960 [2]

Though the Bear Cult Hypothesis is rejected by the majority of modern scholars [3], here’s how the cult may have worked:

Mantle of the Bear Cult

Members of the Bear Cult are protected by an invisible weightless bear hide that grants resistance to physical damage. All cult members gain one temporary hit point for each Cave Bear that has been sacrificed to empower this spell. The spell caster can gain up to two additional hit points per bear by carrying bones from each bear (one per each bone carried).

The Sacrifice: The cult is initiated by killing one or more Cave Bears, consuming their flesh, and sealing their bones (at least the skulls) inside a stone altar [2]. The spell lasts until all cult members are dead or the skulls are destroyed.

Recruiting: Anyone who sees a bone from the Cave Bear(s) used in this spell instantly gains membership into the cult.

Beware the Spirits: No piece of the bear should ever be brought back to the bear’s home [3]. If any cultist or bone is brought within 1 mile of a Cave Bear Spirit’s home then the all spirits will return to destroy cultists in the order that they joined.

References

1. Bächler, Emil. Das Drachenloch vättis im taminatale, 2445 m ü M. und seine bedeutung als paläontologische fundstätte und prähistorische niederlassung aus der altsteinzeit (paläolithikum) im Schweizerlande. Zollikofer, 1921.

2. Maringer, Johannes. “The gods of prehistoric man.” History of religion (1960).

3. Wunn, Ina. “Beginning of religion.” Numen 47.4 (2000): 417-452.

Art Credits: Denise Hoffman’s reconstruction of Bächler’s description