δA² Evocations

Neantertal

130.000 years ago, Neandertal was reaching the seashore of Côte d'Azur

History

Model : Aspasie

Illustrative necklace only : buffalo teeth, Dende seeds, shells Tibia Inuslaechorab
Epieu: cut wood and flame-hardened tip

The Neanderthal man, whose first traces in Europe date back 250,000 years, appears on the shores of the French Riviera 130.00 years ago. The region enjoys a warm climate as evidenced by the remains of animals found in various caves on the French-Italian border: hippos, rhinos, elephants, bison, horses, deer, wild boars ...
The artefacts found on different sites seem to correspond to elements of adornment that the Neanderthal would have realized well before the appearance of Homo Sapiens: eagles ⁽¹⁾, shells ⁽²⁾, animal teeth ⁽³⁾, with fixing holes.
Fire-capped spikes have also been found in Europe and attributed to Homo Neandertalis.
With the disappearance of the Neanderthal man 35,000 years ago, shortly after the appearance of Homo sapiens, the dream of a rewarding co-existence between two species so different and so close comes to an end.

⁽¹⁾ -130.000 years old: cave of Krapina, Croatia
⁽²⁾ -50,000 years: Anton and Los Plane Caves, Spain
⁽³⁾ -41,000 to 45,000 years old: Cave of the Reindeer, Arcy-sur-Cure