People have used color to express creativity and cultural significance for thousands of years. The use of colored materials such as ocher has long been considered a key indicator of symbolic behavior among human ancestors. And as it turns out, humans may not have been the only ones to engage in this behavior—Neanderthals understood the power of color, too.
New research in Achievements of science provides compelling support for the use of ocher by Neanderthals at Middle Paleolithic Mykok sites in Crimea and mainland Ukraine. An analysis of 16 ocher objects from these sites, up to 70,000 years old, found that some show deliberate modifications that indicate more than just utilitarian use.
Read more: Neanderthal fingerprint points to art and possibly portraiture dating back about 43,000 years ago
Analysis of Neanderthal pencils
All 16 ocher pieces analyzed showed targeted modification. Neanderthals. These modifications include grinding, scraping, scoring and flaking. While some ocher pieces may have been used for practical tasks such as processing hides, the deliberate crayon-like shape of the tools suggests that Neanderthals made complex choices in the process of designing and making these items.
Three pieces of ocher were especially memorable for the researchers. One piece was crayon-shaped and showed evidence of repeated sharpening, while the second appeared to be part of another crayon-like tool. The third was unique because, in addition to its penciled appearance, it had engraved and polished surfaces.
This analysis suggests that some Crimean Neanderthals selected pieces of ocher with color properties, processed them methodically, and then used them in ways beyond simple use.
How color can tell us about culture
Over the past few decades, use of ocher has become central to the study of symbolic culture. Archaeologists have discovered that a society's use of color can influence its language, rituals, body modifications and other practices that can tell us a lot about that society's cultural identity.
In this study, the sequence of technical steps required by Neanderthal society to create these crayon-like objects demonstrates purposeful design.
“The deliberate shaping and reuse of crayons, engraved motifs, and evidence of the use of carefully selected tools combine to support the conclusion that at least some ocher materials were involved in symbolic activity,” the study authors said.
These results provide evidence that the Neanderthals who lived at these Mykokin sites were cognitively and culturally complex—complexity typically found in ancient human relatives. The selective processing and long-term use of coloring materials by Crimean Neanderthals shows that they actively made choices that reflected meaning, identity, and communication.
Crayons and Neanderthal complexity
This discovery significantly expands the evidence for symbolic material culture beyond wise man. The research team notes that in human history, “the use of ocher by human cultures was not a sudden change, but was the result of a slow evolution with ancient roots, including various human fossil species.”
The use of ocher appears to have developed in a similar way among Neanderthals. Because the process of collecting, creating, and using ocher crayons has remained unchanged for 70,000 years, the practice suggests a type of cultural continuity rarely seen outside of human evolution.
Based on this discovery, the researchers conclude that symbolic color-related behavior is not unique to humans. Instead, these Crimean crayons present a more colorful look at Neanderthals and their culture.
Read more: Neanderthals may have used glue to get out of sticky situations
Article sources
Our authors in discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed research and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:
