I was interviewed by Brazilian magazine Istoé to comment on the new findings published at Nature Ecology & Evolution this week by Leder and collaborators, with the title A 51,000-year-old engraved bone reveals Neanderthals’ capacity for symbolic behaviour.
If the bone was indeed carved by Neandertals and not by Homo sapiens, this discovery has the potential to add to our knowledge of Neanderthals’ behavioral and cognitive abilities, and to inform us on the degree of complexity related to Neandertals’ artistic ability and symbolic and abstract thinking.
The news, covered by Istoé and written by reporter Vinícius Mendes, was published online and in print, edition n. 2686, July 8, 2021.
