Was Neanderthal life violent? This wound suggests lethal fighting was more common

Neanderthals may have been capable of both violence and care, according to new findings based on bones discovered in a cave in Iraqi Kurdistan. Researchers identified a 15mm hole in a Neanderthal’s left shoulder blade, suggesting the individual was struck by a sharpened wooden spear approximately 75,000 years ago. The wound, believed to have pierced the chest and exited through the shoulder blade, indicates a potentially fatal injury. The remains, named Shanidar A after the cave in which they were found, include the left shoulder blade, right hand, three ribs, and some teeth. According to Dr. Emma Pomeroy, lead author of the study from Cambridge's Department of Archaeology, the wound may have been an intentional heart shot. Experiments using reconstructed wooden spears produced similar round holes in bone, supporting the theory that the injury came from a projectile weapon. While the researchers acknowledge the possibility of a hunting accident causing the wound, Professor Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum in London suggested that an attack by a rival was more likely. He noted that the positioning and severity of the wound make interpersonal violence a plausible explanation. This finding adds to previous discoveries in the same cave. In 1957, remains of a Neanderthal from around 50,000 years ago showed signs of a partially healed wound, possibly from a stone-tipped spear. These findings contribute to a growing body of evidence indicating that human-on-human violence might have been more common in prehistory than previously assumed. Earlier research, including a 2022 study of Neanderthal skulls from northern Spain, revealed multiple healed head injuries, suggesting repeated instances of deadly violence over 430,000 years ago. While these findings do not imply all members of the population were violent, they indicate that lethal conflicts occurred frequently within the group.