A recent study from Tel Aviv University and the University of Haifa suggests that early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals began burying their dead around the same time and place roughly 120,000 years ago in the Levant region of western Asia. These findings hint at a shared cultural practice between the two groups and perhaps even some level of competition for resources.
Researchers analyzed 17 Neanderthal and 15 Homo sapiens burial sites, finding that this region’s burials predate other known burials in Europe and Africa, indicating the Levant may be the origin of this practice. Both Neanderthals and Homo sapiens included items like stones and animal bones with their burials, though the locations and methods varied.
Neanderthals often buried their dead deep within caves, sometimes using stones as grave markers, while Homo sapiens buried their dead near cave entrances in more decorative graves, with bodies often placed in fetal positions and adorned with ochre and shells.
The study authors propose that the rise of burial practices could be linked to increased competition between the groups as they shared the same region, a hypothesis they support with differences in burial locations and grave goods. The researchers note that after Neanderthals went extinct around 50,000 years ago, burial practices in the Levant ceased for thousands of years, reappearing only at the end of the Paleolithic era with the Natufian culture.
These insights, published in L’Anthropologie, add to the understanding of early human and Neanderthal interactions, shedding light on their complex relationship and evolving practices.
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