Charred deposit analysis at Neanderthal excavation site. Researcher extracting prehistoric charred deposits while carrying out excavations at the Pini


Charred deposit analysis at Neanderthal excavation site. Researcher extracting prehistoric charred deposits while carrying out excavations at the Pinilla del Valle site, in the Lozoya Valley, near Madrid, Spain. Several Neanderthal fossils and associated animal fossils have been found here. Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) inhabited Europe and western Asia between 230,000 and 29,000 years ago. They did not use complex tools but had mastery of fire and built shelters. It is thought that they had language and a complex social structure, living in small family groups and hunting for food. Excavations by around 70 people have been taking place here every summer for over a decade since around 2002. Photographed in August 2016.


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Photo credit: © JAVIER TRUEBA/MSF/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
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