NEANDE

EAGLE TALONS f ound in association with

Neandertal remains at the site of Krapina
in Croatia bear marks that suggest
they were strung together to form an
orna­mental object such as a necklace.

50  Scientific American, February 2022

DERTALS
E VOLUTION

LIKE
US Remains from Croatia reveal that
the much maligned Neandertals had
more in common with modern humans
than previously supposed
By David W. Frayer and Davorka Radovčić

February 2022, ScientificAmerican.com 51

 David W. Frayer is an emeritus professor of biological anthropology
at the University of Kansas. He has studied skeletal variation and
behavior in Neandertals and other early human populations spanning
more than a million years.

Davorka Radovčić is curator of the Krapina Neandertal Collection

at the Croatian Natural History Museum. Her research focuses on
Neandertals, early modern humans and H  omo naledi.

L
ast March, as Texas and Mississippi lifted their coronavirus pandemic mask mandates
against the advice of health officials, President Joe Biden accused the governors of
those states of “Neandertal thinking.” Biden was right to be concerned about rolling
back coronavirus restrictions too soon, but he was wrong to use our evolutionary
cousins as the basis for his reprimand.
Biden is hardly alone in wielding “Neandertal” as a pejorative term. In popular
culture, it is common to make fun of Neandertals, pointing to their primitive physi-
cal features, their backward ways, their overall stupidity. Merriam-Webster suggests “clod,” “lout”
and “oaf ” as suitable synonyms for “Neandertal.” Even some of our paleoanthropologist col-
leagues consider Neandertals—who ruled Eurasia from 350,000 to 30,000 years ago—less than
human, deficient in many of the cognitive and behavioral abilities typical of our kind.
Yet numerous studies underscore fossil from Germany: “the thoughts
the similarities between Neandertals and desires which once dwelt within
and us. Finds at Neandertal sites it never soared beyond those of the
across Eurasia show that they had brute.” This perception of Ne­­and­er­
innovative technology, complex for- tals gained currency in the early
aging strategies and nascent sym- 1900s, when French anatomist Mar-
bolic traditions. cellin Boule reconstructed a Ne­­and­
Not everyone is convinced. Critics er­tal skeleton from the site of La
have argued that Neandertals learned Chapelle-aux-Saints in France as a
advanced behaviors or acquired fancy stooped, apelike creature—one that
goods from the modern humans they he saw as primitive in body and
encountered rather than developing there­fore mind. Ever since, paleoan-
them independently. thropologists have been debating

all artifacts are housed at and shown courtesy of Croatian Natural History Museum
Our research on Neandertal ma- just how much like us the Neand­er­
KRAPINA ROCKSHELTER in northern Croatia,
terial from the site of Krapina in tals were in terms of anatomy as Luka Mjeda (p receding pages) ; Croatian Natural History Museum (t his page) ;
northwestern Croatia over the past 15 excavated at the start of the 20th century, was well as behavior.
years provides evidence that the crit- inhab­­ited by Neandertals 130,000 years ago. For a long time it looked as though
ics are wrong. The Neandertals there Neandertal behavior differed from
exhibited a range of behaviors tradi- that of early modern humans in sev-
tionally assumed to be unique to modern humans, and they devel- eral important respects. Researchers argued that Neandertals had
oped these behaviors independently, tens of thousands of years be- the same tool kit for tens of thousands of years, whereas early mod-
fore modern humans arrived in this region. Much remains to be dis- ern humans eventually went on to make a variety of more complex
covered about these enigmatic members of the human family, but tools that used a wider range of raw materials and took more steps
it is now abundantly clear that they were behaving in cognitively to create. Similarly, moderns appeared to eat a far more varied diet
sophisticated ways long before they ever met up with the likes of us. of animal and plant foods compared with the Neandertals’ appar-
ent focus on large game. And moderns seemed to be unique in de-
THE ORIGINAL OTHERS veloping art and rituals.
The Neandertals’ b  ad rap traces back to the mid-1800s, when Brit- In recent years, though, paleoanthropologists have recovered
ish geologist William King wrote of the skull of the first Neandertal evidence of Neandertals behaving in ways no one would have pre-

52  Scientific American, February 2022

 dicted just a couple of decades ago. Bruce NEANDERTAL CRANIUM f rom Krapina was substantially older than the earliest-
Hardy and his colleagues have found bits (left) bears a series of parallel cut marks known modern humans in Europe. This
of ancient twisted thread at the site of on the forehead that probably is where our work at Krapina comes in.
Abris du Maras in France that show signify ritual behavior (right).
Neandertals had fiber technology. Marie SYMBOLIC BEHAVIOR
Soressi and her collaborators discovered From 1899 to 1905 C
 roatian paleontologist
specialized bone tools called lissoirs, which are used for leather- Dragutin Gorjanović-Kramberger directed excavations at the
working, at Pech-de-l’Azé rockshelter in France. João Zilhão and Krapina rockshelter, collecting some 900 Neandertal bones,
his team have shown that Neandertals were eating mussels, crabs, nearly 200 isolated Neandertal teeth, and thousands of animal
sharks and seals, among other marine resources, at Figueira Brava bones and stone tools. He was a meticulous excavator. Uncom-
in Portugal and other coastal sites. Elsewhere in Europe research- monly for his era, he dug in levels—removing one horizontal layer
ers have found indications that Neandertals exploited a wide vari- of sediment, bones and artifacts at a time—and saved much of
ety of plant foods and even mushrooms. what he excavated. In 1906 Gorjanović-Kramberger published a
It is not just previously unknown Neandertal technology and comprehensive monograph on the bones and tools from the site.
dietary strategies that have come to light. Other discoveries dem- To this day, Krapina remains one of Europe’s richest Neandertal
onstrate that Neandertals engaged in symbolic behaviors, such sites; thousands of publications about its inhabitants have ap-
as decorating their bodies and making art. Marco Peresani and peared since 1899.
his group have reported on cut marks on bird wings found in Fu- Our recent research provides unexpected new insights into the
mane Cave in Italy that indicate Neandertals were collecting Neandertals who lived and died at Krapina some 130,000 years ago.
feathers. A team led by Clive Finlayson uncovered an abstract im- In 2013 one of us (Radovčić) did a complete inventory of all the ma-
age resembling a hashtag etched into the floor of Gorham’s Cave terial from the site and “rediscovered” some unusual white-tailed
in Gibraltar. Dirk Leder and his colleagues found a toe bone from eagle remains—eight talons and a foot bone—whose importance
a giant deer engraved with a geometric pattern at the site of Ein- had previously gone unappreciated. Each bore multiple signs of
hornhöhle in Germany. having been intentionally modified. Discovered in the uppermost
Researchers have unearthed many such examples of Neandertal level at the site, the talons and foot bone were found in the same
creativity. But controversy has often accompanied their claims. Most sedimentary layer as many cave bear bones, Neandertal tools, a
evidence of Neandertal symbolism dates to the latter part of the fragmentary child’s cranium and at least one hearth. No modern
Neandertals’ reign, by which point anatomically modern humans humans or modern tools are found at Krapina, so there is no doubt
Luka Mjeda (l eft) ; David W, Frayer (r ight)

were beginning to filter into Europe. Perhaps, critics have suggested, these white-tailed eagle bones are associated with Neandertals.
Neandertals merely copied what moderns were doing or obtained In life, eagle talons are covered with a thick carapace, which
symbolic items from them through trade or even theft. Alternatively, must have been stripped off, given the subsequent modifications
at cave sites that were inhabited at different times by both groups, on all the Krapina talons. One talon has cut marks on its upper
maybe natural disturbances—such as moving water or denning an- surface and a preserved sinew fiber under a natural silicate coat-
imals—mixed modern goods in with Neandertal remains. What in- ing, along with microscopic bits of red and yellow ochre in the
vestigators needed to find to bolster their case for Neandertal so- pores on its surface. Three of the other Krapina talons and the
phistication was evidence of advanced Neandertal behavior that phalanx show cut marks. The edges of many of these marks are

February 2022, ScientificAmerican.com 53

eroded, which we think may be the result MUDSTONE ROCK f ound at Krapina tures have a three-dimensional appear-
of the talons having been tied together appears to have been collected by ance and are especially brilliant when
with a binding such as sinew. Other a Neandertal for its aesthetic appeal. the piece is wet, which increases the con-
marks, including notches cut into some trast between the striking black branch-
of the talons, support the hypothesis that ing structures and the brown cortex. At
these talons were strung into some kind of ornamental object— the bottom of the rock a long, curved black feature traverses the
probably a necklace or bracelet or perhaps a rattle. entire lower face with a concentration of dendritic forms in the
We know from the duplication of right second talons in this midpoint. It is apparently the impression of some kind of fossil-
assemblage that the eight talons and foot bone came from at least ized plant stem.
three different white-tailed eagles. In the Paleolithic, as in mod- Any modern-day rockhound would collect a rock like this one.
ern times, eagles were the largest aerial predators around. Their Did a Krapina Neandertal experience that same feeling of wonder
rarity in the landscape would have made them difficult prey to about this uniquely patterned stone when she or he picked it up?
catch. It therefore seems unlikely this was a random collection In any case, the object generated enough interest that its discov-
of eagle feet. erer brought it home. The collection and curation of this stone
Instead these remains signal that the Krapina Neandertals had show that Neandertals had an eye for aesthetically pleasing ob-
some kind of specialized hunting strategy. Although single talons jects and assigned significance to them.
have turned up at other Neandertal sites and probably served as A partial Neandertal cranium from the site, known as Krapina 3,
pendants, no other Neandertal site has yielded eight talons from provides a different kind of evidence for symbolic behavior. As-
the same archaeological level. sessed as a female based on its size and comparatively delicate
The eagle talons are not the only sign of symbolic behavior build, the specimen bears 35 mostly parallel striations that run up
among the Krapina Neandertals. The site has also yielded a unique the forehead. The marks show no signs of healing, so we know
rock with starburstlike inclusions that went undescribed until they were made after death. Other Neandertal bones from Krapina
Radovčić noticed it while inventorying the collection. Formed of exhibit cut marks associated with defleshing related to cannibal-
mudstone dating to the Middle Triassic epoch, the rock could not ism. But the cut marks on Krapina 3 are evenly spaced and differ
have originated in the Krapina rockshelter, which is composed of from the closely packed criss-crossing butchering marks on these
sandstone. Rather it seems that a Neandertal collected it from other specimens from the site. Nor do the cut marks appear to be
nearby outcrops of rock to the north of the site. Measuring 92 by the result of trampling of the bones by animals, which would have
66 millimeters, with a maximum thickness of 17 millimeters, it eas- left more randomly scattered, overlapping marks.
ily fits in the hand. Because it shows no signs of surface modifica- Sometimes when anthropologists measure bones with calipers,
tion or use wear, we can be fairly certain it was not used as a tool. the instrument can leave marks on the bone. But none of the stan-
Luka Mjeda

The rock is remarkable for its numerous dendritic structures, dard measurements anthropologists take on skulls involve this part
which are exposed in cross section and longitudinally. The struc- of the forehead. What is more, we know the cut marks are old be-

54  Scientific American, February 2022

cause they are filled with cave sediment that buried the bone and Neandertals had more than just behavior in common with
are covered with lacquer, which paleontologists used to apply to modern humans. In-depth studies at Krapina and other sites show
fossils to preserve them. All these factors strongly suggest that a that many morphological characteristics once thought to be
Neandertal made the marks. unique to Neandertals are found in moderns, and some modern
Researchers have observed linear marks on bones at a few other features are found in Neandertals. One such trait is the form of
Nean­der­tal sites, but so far these cases involve only limb bones an opening on the tongue side of the lower jaw (mandible) called
from animals found at these locales. The marks on the Krapina 3 the mandibular foramen. The mandibular nerve passes through
Neandertal skull deviate from all the other examples of bone mod- this opening to innervate the teeth, gums and chin. In modern
ification at the site and are unique in the fossil record. They prob- humans, the upper portion of the foramen is commonly V-shaped.
ably signify some kind of ritual behavior, whether ceremonial mod- In most Neandertals, the opening is covered by a bar of bone and
ification of the remains of a loved one, numerical recording or doo- is called a horizontal-oval (H-O) foramen. But at Krapina, only
dling. Whatever the exact symbolic significance of these cut marks, four of the nine Neandertal mandibles that preserve this part of
the eagle talons or the starry stone, Neandertals were ascribing the bone have the typical Neandertal H-O foramen; five show the
meaning to them 130,000 years ago—90,000 years before modern modern V-shaped pattern.
humans reached Croatia. Numerous other cranial and postcranial features in the Krapina
Neandertals overlap with early modern humans, too. No doubt
RIGHTIES AND LEFTIES Neandertals had a distinctive morphology, but many of their traits
Another symbolic behavior—one that scholars have often held up are also found much later in the modern people who followed them.
as a defining characteristic of modern humans and the secret of It is very unlikely moderns independently evolved these Neander-
our success as a species—is language. Did Neandertals have lan- tal-like traits. Rather there was probably a lot of variation in
guage? Did they gossip about their neighbors, talk about their Neandertal morphology, and in later times some interbreeding oc-
hopes and fears, tell their children bedtime stories? Without a time curred between them and our modern European ancestors. The
machine to transport us back to their era, we cannot know for cer- “unique” traits were passed on as part of these interbreeding events.
tain. But there are hints in the archaeological and fossil records. A Given the apparent cognitive similarities between Neandertals and
number of archaeologists consider body ornaments and other phys- early modern humans, we should perhaps not be surprised that
ical manifestations of symbolism to be proxies for language. the two groups saw each other as humans and exchanged genes
Neandertal fossils themselves also contain clues. when they encountered each other.
We set out to determine whether Neandertals preferentially Despite the fact that excavations at Krapina were concluded
used one hand over the other in their daily tasks. Right-handed- more than a century ago, the stones and bones from the site con-
ness is a common human trait; right-handers dominate left-hand- tinue to provide new information about Neandertals and their
ers in every living human population. Handedness reflects the fact place in human evolution. Undoubtedly more secrets remain to be
that the two hemispheres of the brain are asymmetrical, with each revealed in the Krapina collection. We are endeavoring to tease out
side specialized for different tasks. This brain lateralization, as it some of them. For example, with colleagues from England and
is termed, is associated with language capacity. Other primates ex- Italy, we have been obtaining high-resolution, synchrotron images
hibit varying degrees of lateralization, but only humans show such of baby teeth from the site to evaluate growth rates as measured
a high frequency of right-handedness. by enamel formation. Modern humans are unique among living
To assess the handedness of the Krapina Neandertals, we used primates in having an extended period of childhood growth, which
optical and scanning electron microscopy to examine scratches in gives our large, powerful brains time to develop. Researchers have
the enamel of their incisor and canine teeth. These striations, debated just how similar Neandertal childhood development was
which occur exclusively on the lip side of the teeth, were produced to that of moderns’. Our results show that Neandertal infants
when a stone tool accidentally etched the enamel. This kind of formed their enamel a little faster than moderns, indicating a more
damage can occur when an individual uses his or her teeth as a rapid growth rate on average. Yet it was still in the modern range.
third hand of sorts to grip an object—for instance, an animal hide. Mounting evidence from sites across Europe is forcing scien-
When a right-hander holds a tool and rakes it across material held tists to rethink their conception of these long-disparaged mem-
between the front teeth, as one might do to clean an animal hide, bers of the human family. The Krapina Neandertals are an im-
any time the tool hits a tooth, it will leave a right-angled scratch portant part of this shift. We suspect that future discoveries at
on the tooth. A left-hander leaves an oppositely angled scratch. By Krapina and beyond will further narrow the list of behavioral
studying the angles of the scratch marks evident in even a single and anatomical traits that supposedly set Neandertals apart from
fossil tooth, we can determine whether it belonged to a right- moderns. They were not the same as us. But we have far more in
handed or left-handed individual. common with them than not. 
Our analysis of the Krapina Neandertal teeth identified nine
right-handers and two left-handers. If we expand our sample to in- T  his article is dedicated to the memory of Jakov Radovčić, who served
clude Neandertals from other European sites, the ratio of right- as curator of the Krapina Neandertal Collection for 32 years.
handers to left-handers replicates the typical 9:1 pattern of living
humans. Interestingly, this pronounced dominance of right-hand-
edness is not found first in Neandertals but extends back to their F R O M O U R A R C H I V E S
European predecessors and an even earlier member of our genus, Neandertal Minds. Kate Wong; February 2015.
Homo, from Africa. Apparently hemispheric brain asymmetry—
s c i e n t if i c a m e r i c a n . c o m /m a g a zi n e /s a
and thus perhaps language—is an ancient human trait.

February 2022, ScientificAmerican.com 55