The archaeological treasures appearing in France once again affirm the impressive capabilities of an extinct species.
According to Heritage Daily, scientists have re-examined stone tools dated between 120,000 and 40,000 years ago, part of a collection brought back from two cave systems in Peyzac-le-Moustier in Dordogne, France, where ancient humans once lived.
A stone blade firmly attached to a handle with a type of tar adhesive – a durable clay that has lasted for tens of thousands of years – (Photo: Patrick Schmidt).
These artifacts were excavated in the 1960s, individually wrapped with care and preserved in a museum. Recently, scientists decided to analyze them again.
The examination was led by Dr. Patrick Schmidt from the Quaternary Ecology and Early Prehistory Department at the University of Tübingen, and Dr. Ewa Dutkiewicz from the Museum of Prehistory and Early History at the National Museum of Berlin (Germany).
They discovered something incredible: A durable adhesive made from a mixture of clay and tar still adhered to some tools.
The clay content in this adhesive reached up to 50%, which, when dried, retains a strong adhesive quality, sufficient to securely bond the handle to the tool.
Not only is the dating shocking, but the owners of these adhesive tools are even more astonishing. The ancient humans who left their traces in the caves where the tools were found are Neanderthals.
Neanderthals are an extinct species that belong to the Homo genus, the same as our species, Homo sapiens.
They appeared on Earth around 800,000 years ago and went extinct approximately 40,000 years ago.
This species has been known since the early 21st century; however, it was initially thought that they were quite primitive, still exhibiting traits of earlier hominins.
Yet, as time passed, archaeological evidence—from tools to skeletal remains—revealed that they were more advanced than previously believed, even reaching a level comparable to our Homo sapiens ancestors at certain times.
They were known to craft various intelligent tools, weave nets, spin fibers, create intricate jewelry, and even had larger brain sizes than ours.
However, this brain lacked the elements that provide high adaptability and flexibility, as seen in Homo sapiens, leading to their early extinction during harsh periods on Earth.
Nevertheless, Neanderthals still exist within our own blood: Through interbreeding when the two species coexisted, modern humans today have about 2% Neanderthal DNA.
