Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Bones Give Peek Into the Lives of Neanderthals
NY Times ^ | December 20, 2010 | CARL ZIMMER

Posted on 12/21/2010 5:32:19 AM PST by Pharmboy

Deep in a cave in the forests of northern Spain are the remains of a gruesome massacre. The first clues came to light in 1994, when explorers came across a pair of what they thought were human jawbones in the cave, called El Sidrón. At first, the bones were believed to date to the Spanish Civil War. Back then, Republican fighters used the cave as a hide-out. The police discovered more bone fragments in El Sidrón, which they sent to forensic scientists, who determined that the bones did not belong to soldiers, or even to modern humans. They were the remains of Neanderthals who died 50,000 years ago.

Today, El Sidrón is one of the most important sites on Earth for learning about Neanderthals, who thrived across Europe and Asia from about 240,000 to 30,000 years ago. Scientists have found 1,800 more Neanderthal bone fragments in the cave, some of which have yielded snippets of DNA.

But the mystery has lingered on for 16 years. What happened to the El Sidrón victims? In a paper this week in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Spanish scientists who analyzed the bones and DNA report the gruesome answer. The victims were a dozen members of an extended family, slaughtered by cannibals.

“It’s an amazing find,” said Todd Disotell, an

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Food; History; Science
KEYWORDS: cannibalism; godsgravesglyphs; neandertal; neandertals; neanderthal; neanderthals
Not an unusual find for the Neanderthals...easier to catch one than a mastodon.
1 posted on 12/21/2010 5:32:24 AM PST by Pharmboy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: thefactor; SunkenCiv; blam; neverdem; decimon; aculeus; Dr. Scarpetta

Mmmm-mmm good, ping...


2 posted on 12/21/2010 5:33:42 AM PST by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

Soylent green is neanderthal.


3 posted on 12/21/2010 5:38:12 AM PST by ClearCase_guy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

Get In My Belly!


4 posted on 12/21/2010 5:42:20 AM PST by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

Ok, so scientist(not necessarily these) admit that cannibalism was common among Neanderthals but still wonder why they went extinct. Scientists aren’t the brightest bulbs on the tree sometimes are they?


5 posted on 12/21/2010 5:43:47 AM PST by calex59
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: calex59

Well, they did exist for hundreds of thousands of years...until our ancestors came on the scene 35,000 years ago (in Europe, that is). It was after that they went bye bye. I think our ancestors ate ‘em up.


6 posted on 12/21/2010 5:46:14 AM PST by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy
Mmmm-mmm good, response...:) Creation Myths of the Tenured
7 posted on 12/21/2010 5:48:37 AM PST by Matchett-PI (Trent Lott on Tea Party candidates: "As soon as they get here, we need to co-opt them" 7/19/10)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

I don’t think we ate them up, I think the lack of game caused by our ancestors, who had better weapons, caused them to eat each other into extinction. You will notice the tools found at the site were neanderthal, not Cro Magnon. When Homo Sapiens Sapiens made food scarce in one area they moved on, causing Neanderthals to resort to the only food left to them. They couldn’t compete with Cro Magnon and resorted to eating their own or face starvation.


8 posted on 12/21/2010 6:19:14 AM PST by calex59
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: calex59

Now, bring on some cannibal jokes, what ho!


9 posted on 12/21/2010 6:25:10 AM PST by elcid1970 ("Buy Sabra brand Hummus, made in Israel!")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

10 posted on 12/21/2010 6:40:03 AM PST by JoeProBono (A closed mouth gathers no feet - Visualize)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

There used to be a group a cannibals where I lived, but we ate them.


11 posted on 12/21/2010 7:19:11 AM PST by fruser1
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: fruser1

Don’t eat the clowns; they taste funny.


12 posted on 12/21/2010 7:22:44 AM PST by mbynack (Retired USAF SMSgt)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: calex59
Cro Magnon did not get to Europe for another 15k years, so that had to be Neanderthals who did the deed back then; but later on, there IS evidence that the Cro Magnons et em.

Just think: what large animal would be easier to hunt than the Neanders?

13 posted on 12/21/2010 7:26:11 AM PST by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

Actually there is a school of thought, with some small proof, that Cro Magnon actually was around about 150,000 years ago, and not 30 to 50 as some scientist(the majority)claim.


14 posted on 12/21/2010 7:28:59 AM PST by calex59
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: calex59; Pharmboy
"Actually there is a school of thought, with some small proof, that Cro Magnon actually was around about 150,000 years ago, and not 30 to 50 as some scientist(the majority)claim."

Cro Magnon is the result of breeding between Neanderthals and early Moderns. We are Neanderthals.

European And Asian Genomes Have Traces Of Neanderthal

Migrating humans interbred with Neanderthals after leaving Africa.

The genomes of most modern humans are 1–4% Neanderthal — a result of interbreeding with the close relatives that went extinct 30,000 years ago, according to work by an international group of researchers.

15 posted on 12/21/2010 8:16:21 AM PST by blam
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: blam; calex59
Ohhhhhhh...so that's where these big brow ridges come from! G to the ninth Grandpa Ogg. Makes sense...I guess we didn't eat them all...
16 posted on 12/21/2010 11:57:39 AM PST by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy; SunkenCiv

The family that preys together, stays together.


17 posted on 12/21/2010 3:28:49 PM PST by wildbill (You're just jealous because the Voices talk only to me.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: wildbill
Nice one.

And say hello to the Voices for me.

18 posted on 12/21/2010 5:49:43 PM PST by Pharmboy (What always made the state a hell has been that man tried to make it heaven-Hoelderlin)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy; wildbill; StayAt HomeMother; Ernest_at_the_Beach; 1010RD; 21twelve; 24Karet; ...

· GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach ·
· join list or digest · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · post a topic · subscribe ·

 
 Antiquity Journal
 & archive
 Archaeologica
 Archaeology
 Archaeology Channel
 BAR
 Bronze Age Forum
 Discover
 Dogpile
 Eurekalert
 Google
 LiveScience
 Mirabilis.ca
 Nat Geographic
 PhysOrg
 Science Daily
 Science News
 Texas AM
 Yahoo
 Excerpt, or Link only?
 


Thanks Pharmboy and wildbill.
The Neandertal Enigma
by James Shreeve

in local libraries
Frayer's own reading of the record reveals a number of overlooked traits that clearly and specifically link the Neandertals to the Cro-Magnons. One such trait is the shape of the opening of the nerve canal in the lower jaw, a spot where dentists often give a pain-blocking injection. In many Neandertal, the upper portion of the opening is covered by a broad bony ridge, a curious feature also carried by a significant number of Cro-Magnons. But none of the alleged 'ancestors of us all' fossils from Africa have it, and it is extremely rare in modern people outside Europe." [pp 126-127]
To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.
 

· History topic · history keyword · archaeology keyword · paleontology keyword ·
· Science topic · science keyword · Books/Literature topic · pages keyword ·


19 posted on 12/21/2010 6:12:20 PM PST by SunkenCiv (The 2nd Amendment follows right behind the 1st because some people are hard of hearing.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Pharmboy

The Voices say hello and they may check you out for future communications.

They appreciate politeness in their potential contacts.


20 posted on 12/22/2010 2:02:02 PM PST by wildbill (You're just jealous because the Voices talk only to me.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson