Human evolution: Neanderthal fire use (Introduction)

by David Turell , Sunday, October 22, 2023, 15:31 (396 days ago) @ David Turell

Very much like sapiens:

https://www.sciencealert.com/neanderthals-might-not-be-the-separate-species-we-always-t...

"In spite of the myriad of findings detailing their genetic and cultural similarities, our long-extinct 'cousins' are still all too often exiled into their own species, Homo neanderthalensis.

"That categorization is due for a change, according to a team of researchers who have spent the past twenty years digging through layers of dust and grit in the central Portuguese cave site of Gruta da Oliveira.

"'More than different species, I would speak of different human forms," says University of Trento archaeologist Diego Angelucci, the lead author of a recent study summarizing decades of research on what was home to families of Neanderthal more than 71,000 years ago.

"Angelucci and his team detailed the occupation of Gruta da Oliveira, which saw Neanderthals intermittently share time in the cave with wolves, lions, brown bears and lynxes between 93,000 and 71,000 years ago.

"Among the scattering of stone tools and animal remains were bones that had been burned in a way that provided strong evidence of controlled use of fire.

"Cooking a range of meats, including goat, deer, and horses on a hearth that rarely moved out of position, it was clear fire was a central part of everyday Neanderthal life at Gruta da Oliveira.

"It's no secret that branches of the hominin family tree have appreciated a good blaze for at least 250,000 years or so. For a significant proportion of that time, those flames were deliberately lit, well managed, and contained with the purpose of cooking, if not also staying warm and keeping predators at bay.

"Yet Neanderthals had already long diverged from our shared ancestral lineage by the time anatomically modern humans became recognizably distinct, with some speculating they went their own way more than 800,000 years ago.

***

"As discoveries mounted and analytical tools improved, our impressions of the Neanderthal gradually shifted. Gone is the archaic stoop and animalistic grunting. Today our 'primitive' relatives appear to have intentionally buried their dead, made jewelry, and may even have created art.

"Evidence that they carefully used fire in their technology only further builds a case that Neanderthal culture was far from simple, and far more akin to our own.

"'There is a general agreement among archaeologists that they knew how to use fire," says Angelucci.

***

"Just how they might have started fires isn't yet clear, though Angelucci speculates it might not have been all that different to other Neolithic practices, such as the flint and tinder method used by Ötzi, the Iceman.

"With genetic analysis confirming Neanderthals frequently interbred with our own ancestors multiple times through history, the case for them being a separate species weakens only further.

***

"Still, as more sibling than cousin, it seems the poor old Neanderthal deserves to sit right by our side in the Homo sapien family portrait."

Comment: Use of fire is very important along with clothing, burials, cave art, and jewelry. We know nothing about their possible use of language. I still view them as very close cousins.