Did Neanderthals create art?

In recent years much has been said about the so-called Neanderthal man (the Homo Neanderthalensis scientist). We know a lot of information about this human species that preceded us in the colonization of Europe. However, there are still many obscure points to clear up. Where did they come from? What was its origin? Why did they go extinct? Is it true that they mixed with modern humans? And, above all, one of the questions that has raised the most stir lately: did Neanderthals create art?

In this article we will carry out a brief analysis on the state of the investigations at present, and we will try to extract a series of conclusions about if Neanderthal man was indeed capable of artistic expression. Let's see it next.

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The art theory of Neanderthals

In February 2018, an article published in the journal Science suggested the possibility that Neanderthals would have created art at least 20,000 years before Homo sapiens arrived on Earth. Europe. The article caused quite a bit of controversy at the time, since until then it had not been proven that this now extinct human species had created art in the same way as current humans.

The article was based on the discovery of a pigmentation, which seemed artificial, on the surface of three caves located in Spain: La Pasiega (Cantabria), Maltavieso (Extremadura) and Los Ardales (Andalusia). The first tests had dated the pigments to at least 64,000 years old, which meant they had been made long before the arrival of the Homo sapiens to Europe; that is, when the European caves were inhabited by Neanderthals.

Some voices were raised against this theory, which argued that these pigments could be, simply, natural oxidation of the cave and that, in this case, they would have nothing to do with the hand human. But lately the Neanderthal theory has been corroborated, since, according to the latest discoveries, the pigmentation in question has nothing to do with the geological nature of the cave. In other words: the walls were covered with pigments intentionally.

If the latter is true, we would be before the first known manifestation of art in history and, evidently, and in light of carbon dating, the authors would indeed be our relatives, the Neanderthals.

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Who were the Neanderthals?

In 1856, skeletal remains were found in the Neander Valley near Düsseldorf. The remains were evidently human, but they had some peculiarities: the legs were very bowed and, in the forehead, the skull offered a very strange morphology, since the supraciliary arches were excessively developed. Franz Mayer announced a curious theory to say the least. According to this German anatomist, the remains corresponded to a Russian Cossack who was persecuting Napoleon and who suffered from rickets. This disease would explain, according to the scientist, the shape of the legs. He also claimed that the pain caused by rickets had caused him to raise his eyebrows excessively, which had caused the strange morphology of his forehead.

Such a theory may seem anything but scientific to us, but we have to think that, in the middle of the 19th century, the The public was not yet ready to believe that, in the very remote past, other human species had existed on Earth. land. But the truth is that it was. Neanderthals lived in Europe and western Asia about 230,000 years ago. (during the Middle Paleolithic), long before the Homo sapiens, our species, came from Africa.

Neanderthals were very similar to us, but they had some significant differences. To begin with, its skeleton was more robust and heavy, with limbs much shorter than ours. But perhaps the most characteristic feature of this human species are the extraordinarily developed supraorbital arches and the lack of a chin. As for the cranial capacity, it seems that it was superior to that of our species. Socially, they met in small groups of men and women and practiced hunting and gathering.

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Why did the Neanderthals go extinct?

Around 28,000 years ago, Neanderthals disappeared from Europe and Asia. What happened? There are many theories about it, but none enjoys the unanimous acceptance of scientists. It has been proven that Neanderthal man lived for at least 5,000 years with Homo Sapiens, so the possibility of their becoming extinct has been considered. due to genetic inferiority (that is, less adaptation to the environment) or due to frequent inbreeding, which will increase hereditary diseases in the groups. There is another theory, and it is none other than the assimilation of species. In other words, that Neanderthals and Sapiens would have mated and had offspring together. If that's true, Neanderthals would not have gone extinct, but their genetics would still be alive in us.

The New York Times article Neanderthals in Europe Died Out Thousands of Years Sooner Than Some Thought, Study Says (“A study argues that Neanderthals in Europe went extinct thousands of years earlier than previously thought.”), affirms that the Neanderthal genome has been found, in proportions of between 1 and 4%, in people of non-native origin. African.

Erik Trinkaus, from the University of Washington, also supports this theory, stating that many of the fossils found, especially those of a child from Lagar Velho in Portugal and those of Pestera Muierii, in Romania, correspond to individuals hybrids. And finally, Paul Jordan, in his book Neanderthal, he corroborates this theory when he argues that, without contemplating the hybridization theory, the morphology of some found skulls cannot be satisfactorily explained.

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But did Neanderthals make art?

To answer this question, we must first ask whether the Neanderthal species was capable of creating art. Artistic creation is an exclusively human phenomenon, and a high capacity for abstraction is required that the rest of the animals, in principle, do not have. Neanderthals were human, of course, but they are a different species from us.. Did our relatives, then, have the capacity for abstraction necessary to create art?

religious rituals

In light of the evidence, the answer seems to be yes. Neanderthal man he possessed an undeniable capacity for abstraction, since, in fact, he practiced funeral rites. Archaeological evidence of rituals related to the afterlife have been found; specifically, a series of burials over 40,000 years old that appear to have been entirely deliberate.

A study carried out by a multidisciplinary team, which includes the National Museum of Natural History of France and the University of the Basque Country, points out that the child found among the remains of La Ferrassie, in the French Dordogne, was buried more than 40,000 years ago. The conclusions of the study are based, among other things, on the position and preservation of the remains, which show that the body was buried deliberately and immediately after the death of the little. This would confirm the theory that Neanderthals buried their dead. But the question is: were they doing it as part of a religious ritual, or was it just a pragmatic matter?

The fact that many of these burials were carried out with the body in a fetal position (like the burials from the Shanidar cave in Iraq) shows that yes, the Neanderthals did have some ability symbolic. Because burying a body in a fetal position implies linking death with birth or, in this case, with resurrection. Therefore, it is very likely that our relatives had a capacity for abstraction very similar to ours.

In addition, in recent years there have been indications of supposed rituals related to the skull and to the cult of the bear, although all this is still highly questioned by the scientific community.

Symbolic capacity implies artistic capacity

In light of this archaeological evidence, it can be affirmed that, yes, the Neanderthals had symbolic capacity, that is, of abstraction. Therefore, it is not unreasonable to suppose that, in the same way that they practiced certain rituals to fire their dead, they also practiced artistic creation.

This artistic creation could be related, precisely, to religious rituals. In fact, and as Rebeca Martín Llompart points out in her work The origin of the consciousness of death, it is very likely that a series of symbols were attached to the burials: songs, a specific type of clothing, etc. And we believe that it could also be, why not, that the pigments found in the Ardales cave were related to a ritual, whether funerary or not.

conclusions

As you can see, the controversy is served. The experts still disagree; but what is quite clear is that Neanderthal men and women They were perfectly capable of exercising symbolic thought, as the archaeological remains attest.. And from symbolic thought and ritual to artistic creation, there is a very, very small step.

As Rebeca Martín Llompart says in her aforementioned work The origin of the consciousness of death, “denying the funerary conduct linked to a magical-religious behavior in the homo neanderthalensis It would be to make it impossible for them to have an awareness of death and, therefore, of themselves, since their intellectual capacities are so similar to those of their peers. Homo sapiens”. Indeed: since our differences are so small, why not accept that Neanderthals had the same artistic abilities as us?

The investigation continues on its way. Hopefully, in the very near future, we will be able to decipher the mysteries that our relatives still hold. And hopefully we realize that, in reality, we are not that different.