Neanderthals and modern humans co-existed in Europe for up to 3000 years, new study finds

The latest study revealed that modern humans and Neanderthals lived side by side in Europe for up to 3,000 years. Numerous artefacts have been examined, and the results stated that they coexisted in northern Spain and France for a lot longer time than previously thought. According to a report from Study Finds, researchers from the Netherlands and the United Kingdom claimed that distinctive stone knives indicate that they interbred and maybe shared early technology. According to computer modelling, the two species coexisted for 1,400 to 2,900 years. 

As per The Guardian report, it was previously known that humans and their ancient relatives coexisted on the European continent for over 6,000 years and that the two species occasionally interbred. But the scope of these relationships continues to be the subject of scientific study. 

Igor Djakovic, a PhD student at Leiden University, who is the lead author, claimed that this is the first instance of direct interactions "at any regional scale." Neanderthals lived in Europe for more than 300,000 years and were surprisingly similar to humans despite having bulky bodies and thick brows. This extends the time when Homo sapiens have been on Earth by around 200,000 years. The last trace of them disappeared about 28,000 years ago. 

According to research published in the journal Scientific Reports, “This reaffirms the Bayesian-derived duration of coexistence between these groups during the initial Upper Paleolithic of this region using a novel independent method, and indicates that our understanding of the timing of these occupations may not be suffering from substantial gaps in the record”.  

It further added, “Whether or not this coexistence featured some form of direct interaction, however, remains to be resolved.” 

Study released the time during between Neanderthals and the Homo spaiens

In addition to this, the international team scanned and examined 66 Neanderthal and modern human artefacts from 17 archaeological sites, including 10 Neanderthal fossils. To determine the time periods and the populations at fault, the researchers applied sophisticated statistical models, Study Finds reported.  

It allowed them to fill in gaps in the archaeological record by estimating the earliest and latest times for the possible presence of humans. They discovered Neanderthal artefacts that originally surfaced 45,343–44,248 years ago and vanished between 39,894–39,798 years ago. 

Based on precisely dated Neanderthal bones, the extinction of the Neanderthals occurred between 40,870 and 40,457 years ago. The research team places the origin of modern humans between 42,653 and 42,269 years ago, indicating a cohabitation period of 1,400 to 2,900 years. 

This confirms the period of cohabitation between these groups throughout the early western European Upper Paleolithic, according to research authors, and is essentially consistent with earlier estimations. 

The demographic landscape of Europe changed between 40 and 50,000 years ago when modern humans replaced Neanderthals, who vanished from the fossil record. The earliest people arrived at least 45,000 years ago, and potentially as far back as 54,000 years ago, according to recent evidence from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and south-eastern France. 

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