Secrets of the Neanderthals Buried For 75,000 Years - Shanidar Z

Secrets of the Neanderthals Buried For 75,000 Years - Shanidar Z. An archaeological team has returned to Shanidar Cave and discovered the upper portion of a Neanderthal skeleton near where the four complete skeletons were originally excavated. Other scholars have questioned this interpretation, claiming that the four Neanderthals died as a result of exposure or a rock fall. Recent excavations near the Shanidar 4 remains have prompted a rethinking of this hypothesis.

The collection of bones, known as Shanidar Z, were surrounded by rapidly accumulating sediment, implying that the body had been intentionally covered. Other mortal remains of Neanderthals have been discovered in the cave, but they appear to date from up to 30,000 years after Shanidar Zed and the other four burials. All of this evidence will help us better understand the complexities of Neanderthal burial practices. It may have changed over time, indicating different cultural traditions, which as a very human characteristic. Nevertheless, The fossils discovered in the cave provide new evidence that the species buried their dead through mortuary rituals. The remains, which included a crushed but intact skull, upper thorax, and both hands, were recently discovered at the Shanidar Cave site, 500 miles north of Baghdad.

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SOURCES:
https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/shanidarz