Paris-Area Megalithic Tomb Reveals 5,000-Year Population Turnover

Ancient DNA from 132 individuals buried in a Paris-area megalith shows a near-total population replacement around 3000 BC, with earlier Stone Age farming ancestry replaced by newcomers linked to southern France and Iberia. Pathogen signals (including plague and relapsing fever) suggest disease pressures contributed, but were not the sole cause; environmental stress and other disruptions likely played a role. The finding fits a broader European pattern of decline and corresponds to shifts in social organization and migrations across prehistoric Europe.