Discovering Neanderthal Culinary Preferences: What Their Dinner Choices Reveal About Early Humans

Nothing sparks a lively debate in the kitchen like the best way to chop an onion. But it turns out, even our ancient relatives had their own methods for food preparation.

Recent discoveries by archaeologists in northern Israel reveal that Neanderthals had varied approaches to butchering. They studied animal bones from two caves, Amud and Kebara, which were occupied around the same time by different Neanderthal groups. These caves are about 70 km apart, yet the butchering techniques differed.

Anaëlle Jallon, a researcher at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, led the study. She explained that this reveals distinct groups within the Neanderthal population, each with unique survival strategies. In their examination, they analyzed cut marks on 249 bones from Amud and 95 from Kebara, dating back up to 70,000 years.

The findings showed some similarities in diet, including animals like mountain gazelles and fallow deer. However, bones from larger animals, such as aurochs, were more prevalent in Kebara. This raises questions about the butchering practices of each group. Did they have different cutting techniques or operate with different group sizes during butchering?

Notably, even with just gazelles, the cut marks varied significantly. For instance, Amud bones had more crossing cut marks, indicating different butchering styles. Jallon proposes these differences could stem from preferences in food preparation or simply different learning styles when it came to cutting meat.

Dr. Matt Pope from University College London, who didn’t participate in the study, highlighted how these findings connect to existing research about Neanderthal diversity in tool-making. He noted that analyzing these cut marks reflects the actual actions of Neanderthals, akin to finding footprints.

Interestingly, the debate extends beyond the methods of butchering. It invites discussions about how Neanderthal culture was not uniform but rather a tapestry of various lifestyles within the same environment.

This research not only sheds light on past practices but also prompts us to reconsider our assumptions about ancient human behavior. By understanding how Neanderthals adapted their techniques for survival, we gain a greater appreciation for their complexity.

For those interested in more details, the full study is published in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology.



Source link