Jacques Jaubert

Jacques Jaubert is a Professor of Prehistory at the University of Bordeaux, affiliated with the PACEA laboratory (UMR 5199 CNRS-UB-MCC), where he has been a faculty member since 2002. He previously served as director of PACEA, leads the Prehistory specialty in the Sciences and Environments doctoral school, and heads the Bio-geosciences master's program. His work bridges academic research and public engagement in prehistoric archaeology.

His research focuses on prehistoric societies, especially Neanderthals, with emphasis on their tool technologies, symbolic expressions, burial practices, and use of underground spaces. He investigates the cognitive and social complexity of Middle Paleolithic hominins, particularly through the study of decorated caves like Cussac and enigmatic constructions in Bruniquel Cave. His interdisciplinary approach integrates archaeology, geosciences, and anthropological theory.

The 2016 publication in Nature on Neanderthal-built stalagmite circles in Bruniquel Cave marked a paradigm shift in paleoanthropology, demonstrating advanced group behavior over 176,000 years ago. This discovery dominates recent scholarly output and has become central to discussions on Neanderthal cognition.

• Co-leader of the Bruniquel Cave discovery recognized as one of the most significant archaeological breakthroughs of the decade (published in Nature, 2016)

Jacques Jaubert has supervised doctoral students and leads major research initiatives including the Cussac and Bruniquel Cave projects. He has received support from CNRS and national cultural institutions for his excavations in France and has participated in international archaeological missions in Mongolia, Iran, Armenia, and Yemen. His leadership extends to editorial roles in national and international journals and public outreach through books, media interviews, and filmed conferences.

He is the principal investigator of the Cussac Cave scientific project and co-led the groundbreaking research at Bruniquel Cave with Sophie Verheyden. His team combines speleologists, geoarchaeologists, and anthropologists to explore deep cave contexts, pushing the boundaries of known Neanderthal capabilities.