Figure 1.--This is a diorama depicting a Neanderthal band. It seems a very accurate depiction based on available evidence. Source: Max Planck Institute, Leipzig, Germany.

Neanderthals were a neolithic people that dominated Europe for about 100,000 years. They inhabited most of Europe and western Asia. Neanderthals developed a culture similar to that of early man. They wore clothes and used fire. They were nomadic hunters. I am not sure to what extent if any that they developed agriculture. They made stone, but no metal tools. Their principal weapons were spears and clubs. Neanderthals disappeared after the arrival of modern man. It is widely believed that they perished because they could not compete with modern man, but there is little actual evidence. Neanderthals were heavily built and squat, more powerful, but apparently less intelligent than modern man. The last Neaderthal traces date back to about 30,000 BC. One enduring debate in anthropology is whether is how Neanderthals are related to modern men. We know that the two groups coexisted before Neanderthals disappeared. Some believe that modern man outcompeted and displaced Neanderthals. Others that Neanderthals merged with and interbread with modern man. A recent study based on an assessment of sculls have found substantial differences which suggest that the two were different species rather than related sub-species. [Harvati] Teeth studies suggest that Neanderthal children grew faster than human children. Some anthropologists believe that Neandethals may have been anatomically adult by about age 15, but not all anthropologists accept this theory. Prelininary DNA studies also suggest there was little or no mixing.

Neander Valley

The first Neaderthal bones were found in Germany's Neander Valley, giving rise to the name assigned to these intreaguing people. They were first found in the 1850s. Subsequently Neanderthal finds have been reported throughout most of Europe and western Asia.

Origins

While the first Neanderthal find was in the Neander Valley, this of course was not where they originated. This of course was Africa as is the case with all humanoids. What is not known is where in Africa and what early humanoid they evolved from. This is still a matter of some debate, but anthropolgists believe it may have been Homo Rhodesius--Rhodesian Man. The distribution of the Neanderthal finds suggestrs that the Neaderthals followed a direct route out of Africa through Asian Minor or western Asia into Europe.

Chronology

Neanderthals were a neolithic people that dominated Europe for about 100,000 years. They are notable as they are the only humanoid other than Homo sapienes to have migrated out of Africa and estblished a substantial presence on another continent. While commonly seen today as backward and a failed competitor to modern man, mastering Europe for 100,000 years marks them as a very successful Humanoid. Modern humans while technologically more advances have a much shorter time frame.

Geographic Range

They inhabited most of Europe and western Asia. Neanderthal like modern man originated in Africa. How they reached Europe is not known. DNA studies have found that man moved out of Africa into Central Asia an then west into Europe and east into Asia. I do not know of any studies addressing the migratory route of Neathderthals.

Culture

Neanderthals developed a culture similar to that of early man. They wore clothes and used fire. We have few details about their clothes at this time. They were nomadic hunters. I am not sure to what extent if any that they developed agriculture. They made stone, but no metal tools. Their principal weapons were spears and clubs. Their tool making ability may have been improved by contact with modern man, but this is poorly understood. Anthropologists have long puzzled about the Neaderthals facility with language. Modern advances with DNA may provide some actual evidence. Reasearchers believe, for example, that the FOXP2 gene may have facilitated language. To the extent that this gene is found in the Neanderthal genome, it may suggest language capability. A high level of culture is suggest by the fact that the Neadethals buried their dead. While capable of language, the structure and location of the voice box suggests that they were not as capable as Homo sapiens

Aesthetic Sense

One of the many debates about Nranderthals is if they had an aestethic sense. Were they capable of creating art? Or did they they make jewelry or sophiticated tools. A problem in assessing this is that many Neanderthal sites were also inhabited by modern man. Thus it is not always possible to be sure whout what pertains to who. Some artifacts are clearly related to one or the other. A debate exists as to Châtelperronian tools, meaning tools with dawtooth edges and knives with convex backs. Some were also used for body ornaments. Archaeologists disagre as to who is responsible for them. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutinary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany are developing a new test involving detecting proteins on ancient bones. These proteins are detinctive to Neanderthals or modern man. Tests were run on bones found in association with jewelry from the Grotte du Renne, a cave te 15 miles southeast of Paris. The reasearchers using the proteins believe that the artifacts were Neanderthal, suggesting that they had the capacity to make and use body ornaments. [Swaminathan].

Children

We know little about Neanderthal children. Recent studies suggest thst Neanderthal children grew up fast. Researchers at the Max Planck-Gesellschaft have honed in on tooth growth, useful because in some cse all thst have been found are teeth. And studies of tooth growth suggests rapid maturation in a Neanderthal child. Neanderthal life history meaning the timing of developmental and reproductive events is a matter of controversy. For most primates tooth development, specifically the age of molar eruption, is related to other developmental landmarks such as weaning and first reproduction. Researchers believe that the development maturity of a Neanderthal 5-year approximates that of a human 12-year old. [Max Plank Institute] Polish researchers have found that previously discovered fosils are the Neaderthlal remains found in Poland, dating back to the Ice Age (100,000 BP). That is 50,000 years earlier than previous finds. The remains are from the hand of a Neanderthal child that was killed and eaten by a giant Ice Age-era bird. [de la Garza] The giant bird is evidence of one of the many hazards that not only these children, but adults had to face. It is an open question as to the extent Neatherthals and other early humans were scavengers or hunters. Earlier honnoids are more likely to have been scavengers.

Demise (45,000-15,000 BC)

The last Neaderthal traces date back to about 30,000 BC. Such dates are only rough estimates. Scientists report that Neaderthals appears to have begun dieing out 45,000 BC, first in Asia. They appear to have oersisted longer in Europe. I have no seen an explanation of this divergence, but may be related to the relatively late arrival of modern Europeans in Europe. Some Neaderthals may have lived as recently as 15,000 BC. This was realtively soon after the arrival of modern man. It is widely believed that they perished because they could not compete with modern man, but there is little actual evidence. Some scietists suggest that climate change may have been a factor. The two factors may not be unrelated as the more quick thinking modern humans could gave adapted better to climate change. Neanderthals were heavily built and squat, more powerful, but apparently less intelligent than modern man. There is very little evidence explaining the demise of Neanderthals. As a result, the conincidence of their disappearance after modern man arrived has led many to conclude that they disappeared as a result of comflict with modern man. There would have been competition for resources, strongly suggesting conflict. While intelligence is commonly seen as the key factor, but there are possible factors unrelated to intelligence. There is no evidence of conflict, but given the nature of huminoids this seems the likely outcome of contact. It is also possible that contact with modern man exposed Neaderthals to pathogens to which they had no imunity much as how large numbers of Native Amricans perished as a result of exposure to European diseases. Another theory is that th demise of the large mamamls like mamoths may have been a factor. The stronger Neanderthals may have had an advantage with large mammals while the faster modern man may have had an advantahe with small game. The demise of the Neanderthal may very likely due to a combination of these factors.

Relation to Modern Man

Neanderthals are the most closely related honinoid to modern man and the most recently diverging group from the human family tree. Scientists believe that this divergence may have begun about 500,000 years ago. One enduring debate in anthropology is whether is how Neanderthals are related to modern men. We know that the two groups coexisted in Europe before Neanderthals disappeared. Some believe that modern man out competed and displaced Neanderthals. Others that Neanderthals merged with and interbread with modern man. A recent study based on an assessment of sculls have found substantial differences which suggest that the two were different species rather than related sub-species. [Harvati] Teeth studies suggest that Neanderthal children grew faster than human children. Some anthropologists believe that Neandethals may have been anatomically adult by about age 15, but not all anthropologists accept this theory. Preliminary DNA studies also suggest there was little or no mixing. [Paabo] As the Neaderthal genome work is still preliminary, no definitive statement is yet possible.

DNA Work

Our increasing insights ingto Neanderthals comes from exiting new work that is enabling scientists to map the Neaderthal genome. The reults were published (2010). Researchers in Germany and America have made great strides in extracting DNA from material such as mummies and bone fragments that defied early DNA researchers. Preliminary work suggests that Neanderthals and modern men did not cross bread. At least modern man does not appear to carry Neaderthal genes. Researchers caution that the work that has been done is based on a very small number of samples. Also there is the possibility that hybrids could have been infertile. The completion of Neanderthal genome sequecning is not the end of the story. The genome includes vast amounts what might be called useless coding. An impirtant part of understanding the genetic code is epigenetics--the structure of the genome which determines wjich genes are active. It appears that Humans and Neanderthals shared many genenes, but it is the epigenetics that differed. Reserarchers from Hebrew University in Jerusalen and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropolgy, when the original sequncing was one, or now working on the difficult task of assessing Neaderthal epigenetics. They have found that genes associated with body shape and disease are similar in Humans and Neadrthals, but it is the epigenetucs that explain the differences. The evolving concusion is that the differnces between humans and Neaderthals is less in the raw genetic code than with genes are switched on abd off.

Sources

(de la) Garza, Alejandro. "Researchers discover Neanderthal child was devoured by a giant bird," Time (October 14, 2018).

Harvati, Katerina. New York University. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2004 .

Paabo, Svante. Max Plank Institute for Evolutionary Biology. Leipzig, Germany. Paabo has had success working in Egyptian mummies and is now working with California reaserchers on the Neanderthal genome.

(Max) Plank Institute. "Neanderthal children grew up fast, Science Daily (December 5, 2007).

Rodgers, Alan. University of Utah.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Proteins solve a hominin puzzle," Archaeology (January/February 2017), pp. 11-12

Weiss, Rick. "Creative search for naked truth," Washington Post August 19, 2003, p. A1, 7.

Created: August 19, 2003
Last updated: 3:52 AM 11/29/2018