Neanderthal
In 1856, local schoolteacher Johann Carl Fuhlrott found bones inside the Kleine Feldhofer Grotte cave within Germany's Neander Valley. These remains included a cranium, thigh bones, and fragments of an arm and shoulder blade. German anthropologist Hermann Schaaffhausen studied the specimen in 1857 and presented it to the scientific community. Irish geologist William King proposed the name Homo neanderthalensis in 1863 during a paper read at the British Science Association meeting. Early interpretations labeled these fossils as primitive lower races or diseased individuals rather than a distinct species. Pathologist Rudolf Virchow argued in 1872 that the features represented senility and malformation instead of archaic humanity. This view stalled research for decades until more fossils emerged in the early twentieth century. French palaeontologist Marcellin Boule described the La Chapelle-aux-Saints 1 skeleton as a slouching ape-like creature starting in 1908. His influential descriptions defined discussions about Neanderthals for many years. By the mid-twentieth century, scientists believed human evolution progressed through a Neanderthal phase before reaching modern humans. The spelling Neanderthal comes from Joachim Neander, a late seventeenth-century theologian who visited the valley often.
Neanderthals diverged from common ancestors with modern humans during the early Middle Pleistocene epoch. Genetic data suggests this split occurred roughly 400,000 to 500,000 years ago. They are most closely related to Denisovans based on nuclear DNA analysis. Before splitting, migrating populations interbred with an unidentified superarchaic human species already present in Europe. These superarchaics descended from an early migration out of Africa around 1.9 million years ago. Typical Neanderthal traits appeared gradually in European fossils near the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene. Specimens like Miguelón from Sima de los Huesos show pre-Neanderthal characteristics. Glacial periods forced populations into small refugia which reduced genetic diversity. This isolation led to the development of other typical traits through genetic drift or pleiotropy. After 100,000 years ago, Neanderthals maintained a small population with low genetic diversity. Weak harmful genes proliferated due to the reduced effectivity of natural selection. The 120,000 to 140,000-year-old Israeli Nesher Ramla remains may represent one source population that recolonized Europe following the Penultimate Glacial Period.
The Neanderthal skull features a flat and broad skullcap with a rounded supraorbital torus brow ridge. Their braincase averages 1,500 cubic centimeters for males and 1,300 cubic centimeters for females. The largest recorded Neanderthal brain belonged to Amud 1 at roughly 1,740 cubic centimeters. They possessed large wide noses likely adapted to warm greater quantities of cold air. Strong cheek bones and shovel-shaped incisors indicate habitual heavy loading of front teeth. Limbs were proportionally short compared to modern humans. Average height reached about 164 centimeters for males and 159 centimeters for females in samples from fourteen men and seven women. A deep wide chest provided expansive thoracic cavity volume possibly enhancing lung performance. Fast-twitch muscle fibers boosted sprinting efficiency alongside their stocky build. Adult body mass index ranged between 26.9 and 28.3 using specific size estimates. Skin color varied from dark to light while some individuals had brown or black hair. Red hair does not appear to have been common among them. High rates of traumatic injury affected 79 to 94 percent of specimens showing evidence of healed major trauma.
Neanderthal stone tools belong to the Mousterian industry specifically utilizing the Levallois technique. After developing this technology from Acheulean traditions there remained a 150,000 year stagnation in innovation. Communities collected raw materials from nearby sources no more than ten kilometers away. Some groups manufactured tools from shells and bone rather than just stone. Birch bark tar allowed hafting tips onto spears for better functionality. European populations produced wood spears including the 400,000-year-old British Clacton Spear. They utilized fire for cooking keeping warm and deterring predators across many sites. At Abric Romaní rock shelter in Spain eight evenly spaced hearths lined up against walls provided warmth while sleeping. Hide scrapers served as the only known tools capable of fashioning clothes like blankets or ponchos. Anterior dental microwear suggests Neanderthals used their mouths for clamping while preparing hides. Hunting strategies targeted reindeer horse aurochs steppe bison mountain gazelle Persian fallow deer wild goats camels woolly mammoths and rhinoceroses. Waterside communities consumed fish shellfish dolphin Mediterranean monk seal rabbit tortoise and over one hundred bird species.
Neanderthals collected non-functional uniquely shaped objects such as shells fossils and gems. Gibraltarian palaeoanthropologists Clive and Geraldine Finlayson suggested they used black feathers as artistic media. A 2020 study found evidence of a three-ply cord fragment made from conifer inner-bark fibers at Abri du Maras in France. Perforated shell beads dating back 115,000 years from Cueva Antón were possibly strung together to make necklaces. Engraved flints appear at Kiik-Koba in Crimea within burial contexts. Finger flutings on walls of La Roche-Cotard date back over 57,000 years ago. Ochre clay earth pigment was widely used though its purpose remains debated between decoration medicine hide tanning or insect repellent. The Divje Babe flute from Slovenia dates to 43,000 years old but status as a Palaeolithic instrument is heavily disputed. Many researchers consider it most likely the product of a carnivorous animal chewing the bone. One grave in Shanidar Cave Iraq contained pollen from yarrow centaury ragwort grape hyacinch joint pine and hollyhock flowers.
The first Neanderthal genome sequence published in 2010 strongly indicated interbreeding with early modern humans. Hybridization occurred during at least two episodes outside Africa roughly 250,000 years ago and again 40,000 to 54,000 years ago. Individuals whose ancestry lies beyond sub-Saharan Africa may carry about 2 percent of Neanderthal DNA. Sub-Saharan Africans can carry Neanderthal DNA presumably descending from back migration events. Approximately 20 percent of the Neanderthal genome appears to have survived in the modern human gene pool. This surviving DNA derives primarily from children born to female modern humans and male Neanderthals. Some genes helped immigrating populations acclimatize faster including those related to immune response. About 17 percent of the genome of one Altai Denisovan specimen derived from Neanderthals. Due to low population numbers many Neanderthal genes were selected out of the modern human gene pool through negative selection. A large portion of surviving introgression appears to be non-coding junk DNA with few biological functions.
Neanderthal extinction occurred roughly 40,000 years ago coinciding with immigration of modern humans known as Cro-Magnons. The Middle-to-Upper Palaeolithic Transition replaced Mousterian stone technology with Aurignacian stone technology across Europe between 39,000 and 41,000 years ago. Neanderthals persisted longer in Spain potentially until 32,000 to 35,000 years ago in southern regions. Success of modern humans attributed to higher birth rates better long-distance mobility and more complex technologies. Low population combined with mutational meltdown made them less adaptable to major environmental changes. Climate degradation events like Heinrich event 4 or natural disasters such as the Campanian Ignimbrite eruption may have depopulated areas. The Laschamp event occurring 39,000 to 42,000 years ago increased ultraviolet radiation disproportionately affecting those lacking protective fitted clothes. Some populations assimilated into modern human groups rather than being ecologically outcompeted entirely. The Châtelperronian industry represents a culture where Neanderthals adopted modern human techniques via acculturation.
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Common questions
Who discovered the first Neanderthal bones in 1856?
Local schoolteacher Johann Carl Fuhlrott found the remains inside the Kleine Feldhofer Grotte cave within Germany's Neander Valley. These remains included a cranium, thigh bones, and fragments of an arm and shoulder blade.
When did Hermann Schaaffhausen study the Neanderthal specimen?
German anthropologist Hermann Schaaffhausen studied the specimen in 1857 and presented it to the scientific community. This presentation occurred after Fuhlrott found the bones during the year 1856.
What is the origin of the name Neanderthal?
The spelling Neanderthal comes from Joachim Neander, a late seventeenth-century theologian who visited the valley often. He was not the discoverer but provided his name for the location where the fossils were found.
How many years ago did Neanderthals diverge from common ancestors with modern humans?
Neanderthals diverged from common ancestors with modern humans during the early Middle Pleistocene epoch roughly 400,000 to 500,000 years ago. Genetic data suggests this split occurred within that timeframe before populations migrated out of Africa around 1.9 million years ago.
What was the average height of male and female Neanderthals?
Average height reached about 164 centimeters for males and 159 centimeters for females in samples from fourteen men and seven women. Limbs were proportionally short compared to modern humans while their braincase averaged 1,500 cubic centimeters for males and 1,300 cubic centimeters for females.