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Historical Bibliography Updated: July 14, 2026

Recherches sur les ossemens fossiles découvertes dans les cavernes de la province de Liège. 2 vols. and atlas.

Liège, Belgium: Collardin, 1833 –1834.

A physician from Delft, Schmerling found extensive human remains and artifacts associated with the remains of extinct animals in the caverns around Liège. These human remains were distinctively different anatomically from Homo sapiens. Schmerling concluded that these findings were evidence for human antiquity, and suggested that they might be a different species. Although Schmerling’s findings were widely acknowledged, it was only when the Neanderthal 1 remains were published by Fulrott and Schaafhausen that scientists recognized the anatomical differences. 

Catalog MetadataReference Information
Entry Number#203.8
Permanent Linkhttps://beta.historyofmedicine.com/id/3638
Author Bio LinkWikipedia ↗
External URLrecherches-sur-les-ossemens-fossiles-dcouvertes-dans-les-cavernes-de-la-province-de-lige-2-vols-and-atlas

Geographic Context

Publication place: Liège, Belgium

Mentioned in annotation: Delft