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  • Neanderthal "fat factory"

    From Pandora@21:1/5 to All on Wed Jul 2 20:09:14 2025
    Large-scale processing of within-bone nutrients by Neanderthals, 125,000
    years ago

    Abstract

    Diet played a key role in human evolution, making the study of past diet
    and subsistence strategies a crucial research topic within
    paleoanthropology. Lipids are a crucial resource for hunter-gatherers, especially for foragers whose diet is based heavily on animal foods.
    Recent foragers have expended substantial amounts of energy to obtain
    this resource, including time-consuming production of bone grease, a
    resource intensification practice thus far only documented for Upper Paleolithic populations. We present archaeological data from the lake
    landscape of Neumark-Nord (Germany), where Last Interglacial
    Neanderthals processed at least 172 large mammals at a water’s edge
    site. Their (partial) carcasses were transported to this location for
    the extraction of within-bone nutrients, particularly bone grease. This
    “fat factory” constitutes a well-documented case of grease rendering predating the Upper Paleolithic, with the special task location devoted
    to extraction of nutritionally important lipids forming an important
    addition to our knowledge of Neanderthal adaptations.

    https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adv1257

    What, no fish?

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  • From Primum Sapienti@21:1/5 to Pandora on Fri Jul 4 00:11:12 2025
    Pandora wrote:
    Large-scale processing of within-bone nutrients by Neanderthals, 125,000 years ago

    Abstract

    Diet played a key role in human evolution, making the study of past diet
    and subsistence strategies a crucial research topic within
    paleoanthropology. Lipids are a crucial resource for hunter-gatherers, especially for foragers whose diet is based heavily on animal foods.
    Recent foragers have expended substantial amounts of energy to obtain
    this resource, including time-consuming production of bone grease, a
    resource intensification practice thus far only documented for Upper Paleolithic populations. We present archaeological data from the lake landscape of Neumark-Nord (Germany), where Last Interglacial
    Neanderthals processed at least 172 large mammals at a water’s edge
    site. Their (partial) carcasses were transported to this location for
    the extraction of within-bone nutrients, particularly bone grease. This “fat factory” constitutes a well-documented case of grease rendering predating the Upper Paleolithic, with the special task location devoted
    to extraction of nutritionally important lipids forming an important
    addition to our knowledge of Neanderthal adaptations.

    https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adv1257

    The paper's public. Nice.

    What, no fish?

    Appetizers.


    Interesting.

    "...processed at least 172 large mammals at a water’s
    edge site. Their (partial) carcasses were transported
    to this location for the extraction ..."

    "Alongside evidence for Neanderthal knapping
    activities at NN2/2/B, 118,774 heavily fragmented
    and cut marked faunal remains were recovered,
    representing a minimum number of 172 large mammals,
    including horses [minimum number of individuals
    (MNI) = 56], bovids (MNI = 45), and cervids
    (MNI = 54)."

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