Revised age for Schöningen hunting spears indicates intensification of Neanderthal cooperative behavior around 200,000 years ago
(2025) In Science Advances 11(19).- Abstract
The Schöningen 13II-4 archaeological site in Germany holds title to the most complete Paleolithic wooden hunting spears ever discovered, yet its age has never been properly settled. Initial estimates placed the site at around 400,000 years; this age was later revised to roughly 300,000 years. Here, we report age estimates for the “Spear Horizon” based on amino acid geochronology of fossils obtained directly from the find-bearing deposits. Together with a reassessment of regional Middle Pleistocene chronostratigraphy, these data place the Schöningen spears at ~200,000 years. This revised age positions the Spear Horizon alongside other sites that collectively record a shift toward communal hunting strategies. The Schöningen archaeological... (More)
The Schöningen 13II-4 archaeological site in Germany holds title to the most complete Paleolithic wooden hunting spears ever discovered, yet its age has never been properly settled. Initial estimates placed the site at around 400,000 years; this age was later revised to roughly 300,000 years. Here, we report age estimates for the “Spear Horizon” based on amino acid geochronology of fossils obtained directly from the find-bearing deposits. Together with a reassessment of regional Middle Pleistocene chronostratigraphy, these data place the Schöningen spears at ~200,000 years. This revised age positions the Spear Horizon alongside other sites that collectively record a shift toward communal hunting strategies. The Schöningen archaeological record exemplifies this behavioral transformation that arose within the increasingly complex social environments of Middle Paleolithic Neanderthals.
(Less)
- author
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-05
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Science Advances
- volume
- 11
- issue
- 19
- article number
- eadv0752
- publisher
- American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:40344053
- scopus:105005029725
- ISSN
- 2375-2548
- DOI
- 10.1126/sciadv.adv0752
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 64dea5aa-a3d9-436f-89b1-7e0ad68807e9
- date added to LUP
- 2025-08-01 11:51:39
- date last changed
- 2025-08-02 03:00:02
@article{64dea5aa-a3d9-436f-89b1-7e0ad68807e9, abstract = {{<p>The Schöningen 13II-4 archaeological site in Germany holds title to the most complete Paleolithic wooden hunting spears ever discovered, yet its age has never been properly settled. Initial estimates placed the site at around 400,000 years; this age was later revised to roughly 300,000 years. Here, we report age estimates for the “Spear Horizon” based on amino acid geochronology of fossils obtained directly from the find-bearing deposits. Together with a reassessment of regional Middle Pleistocene chronostratigraphy, these data place the Schöningen spears at ~200,000 years. This revised age positions the Spear Horizon alongside other sites that collectively record a shift toward communal hunting strategies. The Schöningen archaeological record exemplifies this behavioral transformation that arose within the increasingly complex social environments of Middle Paleolithic Neanderthals.</p>}}, author = {{Hutson, Jarod M. and Bittmann, Felix and Fischer, Peter and García-Moreno, Alejandro and Gaudzinski-Windheuser, Sabine and Nelson, Ellie and Ortiz, José E. and Penkman, Kirsty E.H. and Perić, Zoran M. and Richter, Daniel and Torres, Trinidad and Turner, Elaine and Villaluenga, Aritza and White, Dustin and Jöris, Olaf}}, issn = {{2375-2548}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{19}}, publisher = {{American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)}}, series = {{Science Advances}}, title = {{Revised age for Schöningen hunting spears indicates intensification of Neanderthal cooperative behavior around 200,000 years ago}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adv0752}}, doi = {{10.1126/sciadv.adv0752}}, volume = {{11}}, year = {{2025}}, }