Neanderthal footprints are discovered on a Spanish beach left by a child

Footprints discovered in the sand on a Spanish beach were left by a Neanderthal child 100,000 years ago ‘jumping irregularly as though dancing,’ study shows.  The prints have been uncovered due to stormy weather and high tides in June 2020, where they were spotted by a pair of biologists walking on the sand. They stumbled … Read more

Neanderthal teeth with toothpick marks suggest they practiced dental hygiene 46,000 years ago

While the idea of prehistoric dentistry may not sound enticing, anthropologists have discovered evidence Neanderthals practiced an early form of dental hygiene. Examining a wisdom tooth and premolar from the Late Pleistocene era, anthropologists in Poland found evidence their owners used a rudimentary toothpick.  It’s not clear what the pick was made out of but … Read more

Neanderthal remains in Belgium thought to be 37,000 years old are actually thousands of years OLDER

Neanderthal remains discovered in a cave in Belgium thought to be 37,000 years old are actually thousands of years older than previous studies suggested, study shows. University of Oxford archaeologists re-dated a number of Neanderthal specimens from Spy Cave in Belgium, a renowned site for palaeolithic discoveries and found contamination skewed earlier dating efforts. The … Read more

Fossilised tooth of Neanderthal child found just 400km from Cairo

The fossilised tooth of a Neanderthal child found in a cave near Jerusalem could be proof our cousins made it into Africa as Cairo is just 400km away, study claims. Archaeologists from the Max Planck Institute re-examined the fossil record from Shuqba Cave – 28km northwest of Jerusalem – including a child’s tooth. The tooth was … Read more

50,000-year-old Neanderthal poop shows we’ve had similar gut microbiomes for some 700,000 years

Samples of 50,000-year-old Neanderthal poop reveal we’ve had beneficial microbiomes in our guts for hundreds of thousands of years – just as scientists find that modern humans’ biomes are depleting due to our diets and lifestyles, study reveals DNA analysis of 50,000-year-old Neanderthal poop revels human guts still contain dozens of similar microbiota from the … Read more

Fossils: 48,000-year-old Neanderthal teeth from Jersey reveal interbreeding with humans was common

Interbreeding between Neanderthals and modern humans was common, reanalysis of thirteen 48,000-year-old Neanderthal teeth from Jersey has revealed. The teeth were first uncovered between 1910–11 from the top of a small granite ledge within the La Cotte de St Brelade cave by archaeologists with the Société Jersiaise. While the teeth had been assumed to come from a … Read more

Fossils: Neanderthal who fell down a well and starved to death 130,000 years ago had buck teeth

Altamura Man — a Neanderthal who starved to death after falling down a well over 130,000 years ago — had buck teeth he likely used to hold meat while cutting it. Cavers spotted the remains in the Lamalunga Cave, Italy, in 1993 — finding them covered in deposits of calcite, a mineral derived from the surrounding … Read more

Neanderthal children were weaned as babies in a similar way to modern humans

Neanderthal children grew and were weaned as babies at a similar time to that of modern humans, new research has claimed. The study furthers the argument that the now-extinct species was more similar to Homo sapiens that traditionally believed.  Analysis of ancient teeth reveals both humans and Neanderthals are first given solid food by their … Read more

Ancient tools on a Danish island hints at Neanderthal presence  

Ancient artefacts and tools discovered on the Danish island of Zealand hint at the fact Neanderthals lived there 120,000 years ago.  The ancient human relative is known to have lived in Eurasia at this time, but the presence on a piece of land separated from the mainland by 30 miles of sea indicates an element … Read more

Milk tooth found in Italy belonged to a Neanderthal child

A milk tooth belonging to one of Italy’s last Neanderthal children has been found near Venice.  The canine tooth belonged to a pre-teen, likely 11 or 12 years old, and dates back 45,000 years. Neanderthals went extinct around 40,000 years ago after being out-competed for food and shelter by the more intelligent Homo sapiens.  An … Read more