Prehistory: 6 Surprising New Discoveries About Neanderthals!

Neanderthals, or Neanderthals, lived in Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia until about 30,000 years before the present. Its interesting history, lifestyle and interaction with it Homo sapiens Continue to stimulate interest and research in the field of prehistory and anthropology.

We all have a little Neanderthal in us

All the world’s population except Africans (Homo neanderthalensis were not on this continent), share part of their nuclear DNA (from 1 to 4%) with the famous fossil skeleton discovered in 1856. We attribute it to certain diseases and genetic mutations, such as diabetes and Crohn’s disease, but also more severe forms. No covid! More positively, we would have inherited Genes linked to keratin production Allows skin, nails and hair to better resist cold.

This sharing of DNA is the result of ancient interbreeding between our two species, both living in the same regions in Europe or the Middle East. However, hybridization does not work both ways. Men Sapiens And Neanderthal women could have children, but not vice versa. Neanderthal male Y chromosome incompatibility This could explain it Infertility.

Neanderthals shared their knowledge with sapiens

Upon their arrival in Europe, our ancestors brought their knowledge Neanderthal. Reciprocation also occurred, especially since our cousins ​​lived on the continent for 250 millennia. 54,000 years ago, Sapiens Mandrin occupied the cave (Drôme), previously frequented by Neanderthals for four decades. “The precision in the selection of the rocks exploited for their lithic production is alarming,” said the head of the excavation, Ludovic Slimak. So Neanderthals may have guided the sapiens over the vast territory surrounding the shelter to transmit their knowledge.

Neanderthal Maybe hibernating

Bones found at Cima de los Huesos (Spain) suggest that pre-Neanderthals Hibernate To get through the winter. Lesions, such as growth retardation, have been observed in animals that slow their metabolism in winter. After living for a long time under the Ice Age, Neanderthals had a stocky body, which was adapted to the cold.

Neanderthals consumed at least 4,000 kilocalories per day

A 21st century human needs 2,000 to 3,000 kilocalories per day. Neanderthals ate between 4,000 and 6,000 per day. According to German researchers who studied the isotopic composition of collagen in bones discovered in Belgium, 80% of its diet consisted of meat. with a preference for large herbivores, such as mammoths.

The Neanderthal cared for its dead… but could have been a cannibal

A French-Spanish team has revealed that a 2-year-old Neanderthal was buried 41,000 years ago in La Ferracy, Dordogne. The preservation of the bones in relation to the surrounding animal remains, the orientation of the body in the stratigraphic layer and the analysis of the sediments – 60,000 years old – suggest that the pit was excavated and closed. The Funeral practices In the variant La Chapelle-aux-Saints (Corrèze), a buffalo leg was placed on the body, perhaps to feed the deceased. Traces of cannibalism – with the characteristic marks of butchery on the bones – recorded at Krapina (Croatia), Moula-Guerci (Ardeche) or Goyet Cave (Belgium), may also be carried out with rituals of the dead. .

Neanderthals knew how to heal with plants

Tatar has spoken! Neanderthals ate plants. And also certain plants with healing properties. In El Cidron (Spain), traces of chamomile andYarrow, whose bitterness suggests that they were not drunk for their taste! A study of skeletons bearing the marks of a Tooth abscess also revealed the remains of Poplar budsKnown for their anti-inflammatory properties.

Neanderthals produce only unique pieces!

Interview with Ludovic Slimak, CNRS archaeologist and Neanderthal expert.

What are the characteristics of Neanderthal crafts?

when Sapiens Imposing his project on the material, the Neanderthal transformed it according to color, material, morphology. His achievements are always unique. This dialectic with the natural environment is so amazing, no two things are ever exactly the same. And this is not a matter of chance or lack of skill. In Mandrin Cave (Drom, editor’s note), we found a flint point over 10 centimeters long, perfectly straight and only 2 millimeters thick. A real feat!

Did he like things?

Yes! In practically all Neanderthal sites, we find a heterogeneous assortment of minerals, rock crystals, eagle claws, fossils, objects that show interest, nuance, relationship to a particular natural environment. He liked to pick things that were aesthetic, a little weird.

How might this particular relationship with its environment shed light on its disappearance?

We must first understand what it was. The Sapiens, who maintained strong connections between the various groups, were extremely effective. While Neanderthals worked with a smaller, more creative but isolated population. We can think that it was removed after the encounter of two species that did not conceive of the world in the same way.

For further

Books

> The Last Neanderthal, by Ludovic Slimak, ed. Odile Jacob, 2023.

> Neanderthal, my brother, by Silvana Condemi and Francois Savatier, eds. Flamerion, 2019.

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