Archaeologists in north-east Spain have uncovered what may be some of the oldest known musical instruments in the world: a collection of conch-shell trumpets dating back an astonishing 6,000 years. The discovery offers a remarkable sonic window into the lives of Neolithic communities in Catalonia.
From Family Heirloom to Archaeological Breakthrough
The research was inspired by the childhood memories of lead researcher Miquel López García, an archaeologist, musicologist, and professional trumpet player. He recalled a conch shell kept by his family in Almería, southern Spain, which was traditionally blown to warn villagers of impending floods. Decades later, that early fascination led him to conduct groundbreaking acoustic experiments on eight ancient shells discovered in Neolithic settlements and variscite mines across Catalonia.
The shells, identified as coming from the Charonia lampas sea snail, have been dated to between the late fifth and early fourth millennia BC. Crucially, they were collected after the snails had died, indicating a purpose beyond food. The most telling modification is the deliberate removal of the shell's pointed tip, a clear sign they were crafted into wind instruments.
Recreating the Sounds of Prehistory
In November 2024, López García and his colleague, research professor Margarita Díaz-Andreu from the University of Barcelona, received special permission to test their theories. By blowing into the eight intact shells, López García produced a powerful and stable tone he describes as remarkably similar to the sound of a modern French horn.
"It's quite amazing that you get that very recognisable tone from a simple instrument that is just a very slightly modified animal body," López García remarked. The team went further, exploring the instruments' full musical potential through small improvisations. They discovered that by placing a hand in the shell's opening or altering their embouchure, they could change the pitch and timbre, demonstrating a capacity for expressive sound.
These conches represent a foundational piece of sound technology, with the method of sound production—lip vibration—being directly ancestral to modern brass instruments like trumpets and trombones.
Communication, Community, and the Origins of Music
Published in the journal Antiquity, the study posits that these trumpets likely served dual purposes. Their powerful sound would have been ideal for long-distance communication, perhaps between settlements or to miners working in different galleries of the variscite mines where six shells were found.
However, their expressive qualities suggest they also fulfilled a musical or ritualistic function. This discovery connects to a much older find: a conch shell trumpet from Marsoulas Cave in southern France, dated to around 18,000 BC. This indicates a musical tradition spanning millennia, right up to the mid-20th century use of similar shells by López García's own family.
The research prompts profound questions about the origins of human music. "Was it a question of necessity and of survival?" López García muses. "Or was it a question of other kinds of needs... the less human material need to express ourselves, to create bonds and to show our love and feelings within groups?" These ancient shells, now heard again after six millennia, offer no simple answer but a resonant echo of our shared human impulse to communicate and create.
