DID YOU KNOW?
STALAGMITE CIRCLES
©Luc-henrifage/ssac
The world’s oldest known construction was built by a Neanderthal. In a cave in France in the early 1990s, researchers discovered semi-circles of stalagmites more than 300 metres from the cave’s entrance. Stalagmites naturally form from minerals dripping onto the oor of a cave. However, these structures were built using broken stalagmites, which had been arranged in semicircles up to 6.7 metres wide. Through analysis of the calcite in the stalagmites, construction has been dated to between 174,400 and 178,600 years ago. As to why the architect created it, researchers have suggested that the stalagmites were once stacked up to form a wall, which could have acted as a hearth.
In 1829, the rst fossilised bones of a prehistoric hominid were uncovered in Engis, Belgium. At the time, archaeologists hadn’t a clue who or what they belonged to. It wasn’t until almost 100 years later that these bones were attributed to the Neanderthals. Over the course of the century, other similar fossils were discovered across Europe. The rst specimen to be recognised as an early human fossil was found in 1856 in Kleine Feldhofer Grotte in Neander Valley, Germany. Geologist William King suggested the name Homo neanderthalensis for the newly discovered hominid species, and the specimen was dubbed ‘Neanderthal 1’. Seeing the similarities between Neanderthal 1 and the 1829 specimen, archaeologists nally attributed the Engis discovery to the same species.
Around 85 per cent of Neanderthals died by the age of 40
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Neanderthals used prehistoric tools made from stone and bone to cut, puncture and shape animal skins. 4
Dangerous animals, such as cave lions, were hunted and skinned for their pelts, which may then have been turned into primitive clothing.