A unique archaeological find has recently expanded our knowledge of Neanderthals’ capacity for symbolic thought. The object in question is a granite stone, on which a red ochre dot was deliberately applied to reinforce the image of a human face. It is, to date, the oldest example of portable art associated with Neanderthals.
The most remarkable aspect of this discovery was the identification of a fingerprint in the pigment, at a level we have unequivocally dated to more than 42,000 years ago.
