A 75,000-year-old Neanderthal bears a likely fatal wooden-spear wound
A shoulder blade from Shanidar Cave in Iraqi Kurdistan has a 15-millimetre hole that researchers at the University of Cambridge say is consistent with a wooden spear thrust through the chest. They consider interpersonal violence the likeliest explanation, though the evidence cannot establish why it happened; earlier facial injuries suggest Shanidar A survived for at least a year with help from others.
Bottom line — Shanidar A’s remains place evidence of lethal violence alongside signs of care within a Neanderthal group.
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The partial remains, dated to about 75,000 years ago, include a shoulder blade, ribs, a nearly complete hand and seven teeth, according to the study’s researchers.
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The wound’s shape and trajectory suggest the spear entered the chest from the front and passed through the body before damaging the shoulder blade.
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The researchers say the attacker may have belonged to Shanidar A’s group or a rival group; a Homo sapiens attack or accident is considered less likely.
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A split front tooth and other facial injuries indicate Shanidar A lived for at least a year after an earlier blow, the researchers say.
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Lead researcher Emma Pomeroy said eating and drinking would have been difficult during recovery, and Shanidar A likely received some care from group members.