The layer of grey ash and ash-lens excavated in Vela Spila Cave on the island of Korčula at a depth of approximately 5.8 m, and 6.25 m, consist respectively of volcanic ash ejected during the eruption of Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (NYT) roughly 15 ka ago and during eruption of the Ponti Rossi pyroclastics 16 ka ago in the Phlegraean Fields near Naples. In this area, and in other volcano zones, a number of eruptions have been thoroughly examined and directly dated by K-Ar and 40Ar/39Ar dating methods, and their distal deposited dust and ash (tephra) can serve to date archaeological events more accurately than previously customary methods. The NYT layer is stratigraphically situated atop Pleistocene sediments rich in remains indicating human activity. The composition and properties of these sediments make them entirely different from the layers deposited in the Early Holocene. In the cultural sense, the NYT layer is placed at the end of the Palaeolithic. The layer above it belongs to the uppermost Palaeolithic, while the subsequent layer marks the beginning of the Mesolithic. The end of the Pleistocene is particularly interesting as it indicates an era when sea levels rose and the climate, flora and fauna underwent changes, which in turn led to significant change in the existence of human communities, which had to adjust their survival strategies. A particular question that arises is the impact of cataclysmic volcanic eruptions on the ecology of the environment and, consequently, on the development of human communities and individual prehistoric cultures.