For a long time, our species lived in parallel, sometimes even crossing their territories. Science also knows that they interbred because we still carry a lot of Neanderthal genes to this day. But 40,000 years ago this ancient human species became extinct, leaving almost no clues as to the reasons for its disappearance.

The lineages of Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens diverged between 400,000 and 800,000 years ago, and we have diverged in many ways since then. Here are some key differences.

Features

If you met a Neanderthal on the street, you’d probably recognize him right away. The reason for all this is the characteristic facial features, which are much harsher than those of modern humans. They had a sloping forehead with very wide, arched brow ridges. Their noses are wider and more expressive. And the skull is a little more elongated. Viewed from the side, Neanderthals’ jaws were also noticeably smaller and their front teeth were larger than ours.

Although Neanderthals’ brains were similar in size to the brains of intelligent humans, their skull shapes were different from ours.

While our skulls tend to be long and round, the skull shape is spherical; Neanderthal skulls, like most other early humans, are long and low.
– says Chris Stringer, one of the leading researchers of human evolution at the Natural History Museum in London.

Neanderthal skulls often have a ridge on the occipital bone near the base of the skull. If you wear your hair in a bun at the back, this is roughly where this bone is found in our extinct relatives. In the middle of the occipital bone of the Neanderthal skull is a small depression called the supracranial fossa; this is a distinctive feature of this population, but scientists do not know what purpose it serves. According to him, the ear bones of Neanderthals are also different from ours in shape.

A Neanderthal woman named Shanidar Z, reconstructed from the remains of her skull / Photo BBC Studios/Jamie Symonds

body shape

• Neanderthals could walk upright on two legs, and their skeletons were very similar to ours.
• On average, their height was between 150 and 170 centimeters. This is approximately 12-14 centimeters lower than that of Europeans after World War II.
• According to Stringer, Neanderthals were very muscular, broad-shouldered, barrel-shaped, and had wide hips that bulged outwards.
• Studies show they had 20% more lung volume than modern humans.
• Neanderthals’ limbs also differed from modern humans’ proportions; The lower parts of the arms and legs were relatively short compared to the upper parts. It gave them a chunky look. Similar features are seen in modern humans living in cold climates; The shorter, wider body is an adaptation to reduce surface area and retain heat.

Behaviour

Like all early humans, the life of Neanderthals was difficult, and this affected the formation of their appearance.

They lived on land, had to move a lot and used a lot of muscle power.
– says Stringer.

Their skeletons, built for strength and endurance, helped them withstand a physically demanding lifestyle of hunting and gathering, he said.

H. sapiens also faced these challenges but had lighter skeletons; This was probably because they had cultural adaptations that made their physical lives somewhat easier, such as making tools and long-distance trade. “Obviously, the more sophisticated your technology is, the more it can reduce stress on the skeleton in daily activities,” the scientist added.

According to him, Neanderthals were probably very similar to us in general in terms of behavior. For example, we already have evidence that they cared for the sick and perhaps buried their dead. They also lived in caves, formed small communities, made fires, and may have spoken.

Food

Neanderthals are believed to have eaten both meat and plant foods such as hard seeds and nuts. However, those living in cold climates probably adhered to a meatier diet than those living in warmer regions.

It is known that Neanderthals hunted large and medium-sized game, but did not use long-range weapons. Instead, they likely used an ambush hunting technique, such as hiding in bushes and then jumping out and stabbing the animal with a sharp spear.

Neanderthals probably also wore some form of clothing, such as animal skins on their shoulders or around their waists, depending on where they lived. H. sapiens reached regionally higher latitudes than Neanderthals, so anatomically modern humans would need more specialized clothing in those places.

homo sapiens

Scientists add that the first Homo sapiens exhibited behavior very similar to Neanderthals. The differences between them emerged later. For example, when the first ancestors of modern humans left Africa about 200,000 years ago, they likely used the same types of stone tools as Neanderthals. Just around 50,000 years ago, around the time the Neanderthals became extinct, there was an “explosion” in culture and technology.