Cro-Magnon ( or anglicised ) is one of the main types of Homo sapiens of the European Upper Paleolithic. It is named after the cave of Crô-Magnon in southwest France, where the first specimen was found. The term falls outside the usual naming conventions for early humans and is used in a general sense to describe the oldest modern people in Europe, though also a specific (but very frequent) subtype among their fossil remains. Excavations The geologist Louis Lartet discovered the first five skeletons in March 1868 in the Cro-Magnon rock shelter at Les Eyzies, Dordogne, France. The rock shelter contained a large cavity which protected the fossils. The type specimen from this find is Cro-Magnon 1. The skeletons showed the same high forehead, upright posture and slender (gracile) skeleton as modern humans. Other specimens have since come to light in other parts of Europe and in the Middle East. The European individuals pr