Why Is La Ferrassie Man A Unique And Famous Neanderthal?

Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com - Scientists have unearthed the remains of hundreds of Neanderthals, but until this day, no one is as unique and famous as the La Ferrassie Man (LF1).

The skull of La Ferrassie 1 on display at Wollaton Hall in Nottingham, UK. Credit: Mike Peel - CC BY-SA 4.0

The Neanderthal was discovered at the La Ferrassie rock shelter in the Dordogne Valley, France in 1909. At the site were also the remains of an adult woman and several Neanderthal children. How and why all these individuals ended up in the cave has long intrigued scientists, but it seems it is a case of intentional burial. The rock shelter was repeatedly occupied by Neanderthals during millennia.

The famous Neanderthal’s skeleton has been dated to between 40,000 and 54,000 years. Studies of LF1’s remains revealed La Ferrassie Man was about 50 years at the time of his death. Scientists have not been able to determine the lifespan of Neanderthals, but finding an individual who lived more than 45 years is rare, which is why La Ferrassie Man is considered an old man. He was also around 171 centimeters (5 feet and 7 inches) tall, and his leg and foot bones clearly showed he could walk upright, just like humans.

The Neanderthal suffered various broken bones during his lifetime and had ongoing respiratory issues when he died. Neanderthal cultural practices are often discussed. Was burial of the dead practiced by Neandertals, or is it an innovation specific to our species? Were Neanderthals really capable of such cultural sophistication? Though some scientists remain skeptical, there is evidence the Neanderthals did bury their dead.

Researchers say La Ferrassie Man was deliberately buried in the pit by other members of his social group.

The skeleton of La Ferrassie Man is “one of the most important Neanderthal individuals both for its completeness and due to the important role it has played historically in the interpretation of Neanderthal anatomy and lifeways.” 1

His skull, the largest and most complete Neanderthal skull ever found, has “many of the typical Neanderthal traits such as the low, sloping forehead and large nasal opening.” 2

“The LF1 skeleton is characterized by good preservation of bone surfaces. None of the analyzed LF1 remains shows any signs of hominin manipulation, such as cut-marks or intentional breakage. No evidence of carnivore activity, such as tooth marks, or small mammal activity, like rodent gnawing, was observed on the LF1 remains.

His front incisors show a slanted wear that does not occur from chewing; one hypothesis to explain this odd wear on his teeth is that he habitually held something in place between his front teeth, such as a hide, that he then scraped with a tool. Although this hypothesis has been debated, the use of the teeth as tools may represent a remarkable Neanderthal behavioral adaptation.” 3

La Ferrassie Man is an extraordinary scientific discovery that still provides new insights into Neandertal anatomy and behavior.

Written by Jan Bartek - AncientPages.com Staff Writer

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1. Binghamton University - New technology reveals secrets of famous Neandertal skeleton,  La Ferrassie 1
2. Smithsonian Institution Human Origins - La Ferrassie
3. Asier Gómez-Olivencia, Rolf Quam, Nohemi Sala, Morgane Bardey, James C. Ohman, Antoine Balzeau. La Ferrassie 1: New perspectives on a “classic” Neandertal. Journal of Human Evolution, 2018; 117: 13 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.12.004
4. Jean-Pierre Bocquet-Appel and Anna Degioanni - Neanderthal Demographic Estimates