September 13, 2006
Neanderthals' last stand?
Our evolutionary cousin the Neanderthal may have survived in Europe much longer than previously thought.From the BBC.A study in Nature magazine suggests the species may have lived in Gorham's Cave on Gibraltar up to 24,000 years ago.
The Neanderthal people were believed to have died out about 35,000 years ago, at a time when modern humans were advancing across the continent.
The new evidence suggests they held on in Europe's deep south long after the arrival of Homo sapiens.
The research team believes the Gibraltar Neanderthals may even have been the very last of their kind.
"It shows conclusively that Gorham's Cave today was the last place on the planet where we know Neanderthals lived," said lead author Professor Clive Finlayson, director of heritage at the Gibraltar Museum.
Posted by David on September 13, 2006 8:48 PM
The cave looked like an excellent spot and with the marshy grassland all around, prime real estate. It must have been very lonely for the last holdouts, the tribe gone and the hunting grounds vanished.
Posted by: Sarah on September 14, 2006 6:30 PM
cronaca.com