A 51,000-year-old engraved bone reveals Neanderthals’ capacity for symbolic behaviour

Leder, Dirk; Hermann, Raphael; Hüls, Matthias; Russo, Gabriele; Hoelzmann, Philipp; Nielbock, Ralf; Böhner, Utz; Lehmann, Jens; Meier, Michael; Schwalb, Antje; Tröller-Reimer, Andrea; Koddenberg, Tim; Terberger, Thomas

doi:10.1038/s41559-021-01487-z

Cited by 33 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Ten incised lines are virtually parallel, six of which are almost equally spaced, a property requiring careful deliberation of line spacing. Related to the parallel lines of this image, equal spacing of engraved orthogonally intersecting lines (chevron pattern) is more apparent on a giant deer phalanx found at a cave entrance in northern Germany and dated at approximately 51ka ( Leder et al, 2021 ). The Middle Paleolithic context in which this bone was found is clearly linked to Neanderthals.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

The Saliency of Snake Scales and Leopard Rosettes to Infants: Its Relevance to Graphical Patterns Portrayed in Prehistoric Art

Coss

Charles

2021

Front. Psychol.

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Geometrically arranged spots and crosshatched incised lines are frequently portrayed in prehistoric cave and mobiliary art. Two experiments examined the saliency of snake scales and leopard rosettes to infants that are perceptually analogous to these patterns. Experiment 1 examined the investigative behavior of 23 infants at three daycare facilities. Four plastic jars (15×14.5cm) with snake scales, leopard rosettes, geometric plaid, and plain patterns printed on yellowish-orange paper inside were placed individually on the floor on separate days during playtime. Fourteen 7–15-month-old infants approached each jar hesitantly and poked it before handling it for five times, the criterion selected for statistical analyses of poking frequency. The jars with snake scales and leopard rosettes yielded reliably higher poking frequencies than the geometric plaid and plain jars. The second experiment examined the gaze and grasping behavior of 15 infants (spanning 5months of age) seated on the laps of their mothers in front of a table. For paired comparisons, the experimenter pushed two of four upright plastic cylinders (13.5×5.5cm) with virtually the same colored patterns simultaneously toward each infant for 6s. Video recordings indicated that infants gazed significantly longer at the cylinders with snake scales and leopard rosettes than the geometric plaid and plain cylinders prior to grasping them. Logistic regression of gaze duration predicting cylinder choice for grasping indicated that seven of 24 paired comparisons were not significant, all of which involved choices of cylinders with snake scales and leopard rosettes that diverted attention before reaching. Evidence that these biological patterns are salient to infants during an early period of brain development might characterize the integration of subcortical and neocortical visual processes known to be involved in snake recognition. In older individuals, memorable encounters with snakes and leopards coupled with the saliency of snake scales and leopard rosettes possibly biased artistic renditions of similar patterns during prehistoric times.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

The Saliency of Snake Scales and Leopard Rosettes to Infants: Its Relevance to Graphical Patterns Portrayed in Prehistoric Art

Coss

Charles

2021

Front. Psychol.

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“…The emergence of symbolic behaviour has also been investigated recently by neuroarchaeology. Some archaeologists have argued that the earliest graphic manifestations, dating from the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic in Eurasia and the African Middle Stone Age, were conceived and used as signs or symbols, and thus demonstrate abstraction and communication capacities that were not previously attributed to the human populations of those times [41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49]. Others contend that early abstract engraving production resulted from low-level visual perceptual phenomena [50][51][52] and should be interpreted as a "proto-aesthetic" behaviour devoid of semiotic intent.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Neural correlates of perceiving and interpreting engraved prehistoric patterns as human production: Effect of archaeological expertise

et al. 2022

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It has been suggested that engraved abstract patterns dating from the Middle and Lower Palaeolithic served as means of representation and communication. Identifying the brain regions involved in visual processing of these engravings can provide insights into their function. In this study, brain activity was measured during perception of the earliest known Palaeolithic engraved patterns and compared to natural patterns mimicking human-made engravings. Participants were asked to categorise marks as being intentionally made by humans or due to natural processes (e.g. erosion, root etching). To simulate the putative familiarity of our ancestors with the marks, the responses of expert archaeologists and control participants were compared, allowing characterisation of the effect of previous knowledge on both behaviour and brain activity in perception of the marks. Besides a set of regions common to both groups and involved in visual analysis and decision-making, the experts exhibited greater activity in the inferior part of the lateral occipital cortex, ventral occipitotemporal cortex, and medial thalamic regions. These results are consistent with those reported in visual expertise studies, and confirm the importance of the integrative visual areas in the perception of the earliest abstract engravings. The attribution of a natural rather than human origin to the marks elicited greater activity in the salience network in both groups, reflecting the uncertainty and ambiguity in the perception of, and decision-making for, natural patterns. The activation of the salience network might also be related to the process at work in the attribution of an intention to the marks. The primary visual area was not specifically involved in the visual processing of engravings, which argued against its central role in the emergence of engraving production.

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“…In Italy, they represent, together with the red deer ( Cervus elaphus ) and the wild boar ( Sus scrofa ), the main species of ungulates, with a consistency of over 400,000 head for roe deer and 20,000 head for fallow deer [ 1 ]. Among wild animals, ruminants play a major role in terms of multiple routes of contact with humans and the strong influence they still have on our culture [ 2 ]. In recent decades, the interest in wildlife diseases has increased, with the awareness of their public health implications and the importance of active surveillance [ 3 , 4 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Immunohistochemical Characterization of Immune System Cells in Lymphoid Organs from Roe and Fallow Deer

Fonti

Parisi

Millanta

et al. 2022

Animals

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Roe and Fallow deer are common wild ruminants widely distributed in Italy. Infectious diseases of these species can potentially pose health risks to domestic animals and humans. However, few studies have been conducted in which immune system cells in these species were phenotyped. The aims of this study were to determine the cross-reactivity of a wide anti-human panel of commercial antibodies on formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples and to describe the distribution of roe and fallow deer main immune cell subsets in the lymph nodes and spleen. Twenty retromandibular lymph nodes (RLNs) and spleen samples were collected from 10 roe deer and 10 fallow deer and were tested by a panel of 12 commercial anti-human antibodies. The CD79a, CD20, CD3, Iba-1, MAC387, and AM-3K antibodies were successfully labeled cells in cervine tissue, while the Foxp3 and the CD68 did not show suitable immunostaining. This study supplies the first immunohistochemical description of immune cell subpopulations in non-pathological spleen and RLNs from roe and fallow deer and provides an easily repeatable manual IHC protocol to immunolocalize cervine B-, T-cells, and macrophages subsets in FFPE tissue samples.

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A 51,000-year-old engraved bone reveals Neanderthals’ capacity for symbolic behaviour

Cited by 33 publications

References 55 publications

The Saliency of Snake Scales and Leopard Rosettes to Infants: Its Relevance to Graphical Patterns Portrayed in Prehistoric Art

The Saliency of Snake Scales and Leopard Rosettes to Infants: Its Relevance to Graphical Patterns Portrayed in Prehistoric Art

Neural correlates of perceiving and interpreting engraved prehistoric patterns as human production: Effect of archaeological expertise

Immunohistochemical Characterization of Immune System Cells in Lymphoid Organs from Roe and Fallow Deer

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