History of lions in Europe

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The history of lions in Europe is part of the wider history of the lion species complex. The rediscovery and confirmation of its presence in Europe, already known from myths, historical accounts and ancient art, was made possible by the finding of remains of Pleistocene and Holocene lions excavated in Europe since the early 19th century. The oldest remains of a lion in Europe, assigned to the species Panthera fossilis, are over 600,000 years old. This species represents one of the largest known felids to have ever existed; it eventually evolved into the smaller, modern lion-sized cave lion (Panthera spelaea), which is widely depicted in Palaeolithic European cave painting. Remains of P. fossilis and P. spelaea are known from across Europe. Cave lions became extinct around 14,000 years ago at the end of the Pleistocene. During the early-middle Holocene from around 8,000-6,000 years ago, the modern Asiatic lion colonised Southeast Europe and parts of Central and Eastern Europe, before becoming...

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