Neanderthals were more advanced in their culinary skills than previously thought, according to a new study. Evidence from a lakeside site in Neumark-Nord, Germany, suggests that Neanderthals were processing animal bones to extract fat from them as early as 125,000 years ago, nearly 100,000 years before modern humans were known to engage in similar practices.
The site at Neumark-Nord yielded over 100,000 bone fragments from at least 172 individual animals, including horses, bovids, deer, foxes, big cats, and an extinct two-horned rhinoceros. The bones showed clear signs of being smashed into small pieces and heated to extract the grease from the spongy tissue inside. This fat would have provided a valuable, high-calorie food source for hunter-gatherer groups.
The research, led by Wil Roebroeks from Leiden University in the Netherlands, describes the location as a “fat factory” that was intensively used for a short period. While there is no direct evidence linking Neanderthals to the butchery, they were the only known humans in Europe at that time.
Previously, the oldest confirmed site of grease rendering was in Portugal 28,000 years ago. The labor-intensive process of breaking bones into small fragments suggests that the Neanderthals had a specific purpose in mind. Though there is no direct evidence of boiling, the presence of heated bones, flint artifacts, and stones indicate that fires were used at the site.
Given that the earliest known pottery dates back to around 20,000 years ago, it is likely that Neanderthals used perishable materials like deer skin or birch bark containers to boil the bones. These findings suggest that Neanderthals had a sophisticated culinary repertoire and possibly engaged in food storage practices.
This new discovery sheds light on the advanced skills and capabilities of Neanderthals, challenging previous notions of their culinary practices. The study adds to the growing body of evidence that Neanderthals were skilled hunters and gatherers who utilized innovative techniques to procure and process food.
