Jan 17, 2016

Our Evolving Perception of Neanderthals: From Brutes to Complex Ancestors

For generations, the image of Neanderthals has been shaped by museum displays, book illustrations, and films, portraying them as hunched, inarticulate brutes covered in ape-like hair. However, a growing body of recent evidence challenges this perception. This evidence suggests that Neanderthals walked upright, communicated through speech, crafted tools, practiced burial rituals, possessed cranial capacities comparable to or even larger than modern humans, and exhibited facial hair patterns similar to our own. In 2013, a Neanderthal fossil dating back 120,000 years was discovered, revealing clues of fibrous dysplasia, a condition seen in modern humans. As a result, contemporary reconstructions of Neanderthals in museums now depict individuals more akin to modern Europeans, albeit with larger skulls, low foreheads, absent chins, robust bones, and considerably stronger hands and arms.

The journey of understanding Neanderthals began in 1829 when Philippe-Charles Schmerling uncovered the first Neanderthal fossil, that of a young child, in a cave in present-day Belgium. However, it wasn't officially identified as such until 1936. The first recognized fossil representing a distinct human form, now termed Neanderthal after the discovery site in Neander's Valley, Germany, was unearthed in 1856. Since then, Neanderthal remains have been found in Western Europe, the Near East, and Siberia. These enigmatic beings thrived some 600,000 to 350,000 years ago, with their population peaking at around 70,000 individuals in Europe. Mysteriously, they vanished approximately 30,000 to 45,000 years ago, with the exact causes of their extinction remaining speculative.

Genetic studies suggest that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens diverged from a common ancestor roughly 400,000 to 500,000 years ago. Debate persists regarding whether Neanderthals should be classified as a subspecies of Homo sapiens, although prevailing opinion leans towards recognizing them as a separate species. Intriguingly, Neanderthals coexisted with modern humans in the same geographical regions for many millennia and evidence suggests they interbred with our species. Remarkably, approximately 99.7 percent of Neanderthal DNA aligns with the genetic code of present-day humans, with Europeans and Asians inheriting 1–4 percent of their genes from these ancient relatives.


In 1899, Croatian geologist, paleontologist, and archaeologist Dragutin Gorjanovic-Kramberger (1856–1936) made a significant discovery in Krapina, a town situated in northern Croatia. His excavation yielded an astonishing collection of more than 800 Neanderthal fossil remains. Today, these remarkable finds, along with the sculptures displayed here, can be explored at the Krapina Neanderthal Museum.


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