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The Smart Neanderthal: Bird Catching, Cave Art & The Cognitive Revolution
Finlayson, quien está a la vanguardia de esta investigación, relata los descubrimientos de su equipo, evidenciando que los neandertales capturaron aves rapaces y usaron sus plumas con fines simbólicos. También hay pruebas de que los neandertales practicaron otras formas de arte, como indican los grabados recientemente descubiertos en la cueva de Gorham en Gibraltar. Relacionando todos estos hechos, arroja una nueva luz sobre los neandertales y la «revolución cognitiva». Argumenta que no hubo revolución, el comportamiento moderno surgió de forma gradual e independiente entre las diferentes poblaciones de humanos modernos y neandertales. Incluso algunas prácticas de los neandertales fueron adoptadas por los humanos modernos. Clive Finlayson da un vuelco a las teorías clásicas sobre los orígenes humanos y nos plantea importantes preguntas sobre quiénes somos realmente.
1 pages, Audio CD
First published January 1, 2019
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April 15, 2019
Clive Finlayson is especially fascinated by two things, Neanderthals and birds. Since 1989, he has been excavating caves in Gibraltar, on the north shore of the Mediterranean, where Neanderthals lived from 127,000 to 32,000 years ago. Gibraltar is the place where the last Neanderthals tearfully bid farewell to this magnificent planet. Later, after they were gone, Homo sapiens lived in these caves, beginning maybe 30,000 years ago. There is no evidence of them being in living contact at the Gibraltar site.
For decades, many scholars have adopted the belief that we Homo sapiens were superior to Neanderthals. They imagine that when humans invaded Neanderthal territory, the inferior species was helplessly overwhelmed and exterminated. This belief is known as the replacement model, which assumed that we could never meet other humans without wiping them out. History is loaded with replacement stories.
Beliefs are based on assumptions, which are sometimes daffy balderdash. Over time, beliefs that pass from one generation to the next can mutate into illusions that are perceived to be certain truths. Human supremacists really annoy Finlayson, and he has written three books to spank them — Neanderthals and Modern Humans (2004), The Humans Who Went Extinct (2009), and The Smart Neanderthal (2019). The new book is an enjoyable, well written mystery story, in which the brainy hero (Finlayson) confronts the dodgy beliefs held by many mainstream scholars.
It’s not surprising that folks who have spent more than 30 years studying Neanderthals actually accumulate a lot of experiences and insights. They learn things that scholars in faraway college towns never do. The myth of progress is only a few centuries old, and it perceives that all previous generations were inferior — especially our prehistoric relatives. The human supremacists in academia have generated a list of advanced characteristics that Neanderthals lack. In his new book, Finlayson examines this list, item by item, and presents evidence to the contrary. He concludes that humans and Neanderthals were equally intelligent, but not equally lucky in the survival lottery.
Of all the prehistoric hominins, we know Neanderthals best, because we have discovered a number of sites where they lived in Eurasia. In caves, evidence of days past is far less likely to be blown or washed away, and more likely to be preserved and found. Over time, layers of stuff build up, with newer ones covering the old. Scientists assign dates to each layer, and document the artifacts found.
What makes the book especially interesting is that he uses his love of birds to support a number of his arguments. The caves at Gibraltar contain the remains of 160 species of birds. The region was once a wonderland for the winged ones, but not now. “Their world has been destroyed by civilized man in a few centuries.”
Human supremacists assert that dimwitted Neanderthals were incapable of catching speedy prey, like birds or hares. So Finlayson visited Spain, and watched an old gent attract 300 large vultures by putting out some carrion. They surrounded him, and happily took food from his hand. Another time, he went to an island off the coast of Scotland, where it was the breeding season for 150,000 gannets. None took flight as he strolled through them, instead they pecked his legs bloody.
Some birds respond to danger by flying away. Others, like the stone curlews, have natural coloration that provides excellent camouflage. When danger appears, they freeze, and become nearly invisible to predators. They only take flight if the intruder makes a sudden movement. Finlayson has calmly walked right past frozen curlews, and could have easily snatched them. Sometimes speedy hares will freeze in the presence of danger, allowing their camouflage to render them invisible. Finlayson has walked very close to frozen hares.
The 300,000+ year saga of Neanderthals was an era of roller coaster climate shifts. Most of their time on Earth was colder than average. Some climate shifts happened suddenly and sharply. Children were sometimes born in a steppe habitat which, decades earlier, had been woodland when their grandparents lived there.
Between the Arctic, and the Mediterranean, there were several climate zones — ice, tundra, steppe, and woodland. When the climate plunged into frigid periods, glaciers and ice sheets expanded in the north, which compressed the zones to the south. There were times when the ice sheet extended from Scandinavia to northern Germany, and covered most of the British Isles. At times, large areas of France were tundra. The Mediterranean Sea, a large body of warm water, moderated the climate of southern Europe, so the temperature swings were less intense in Gibraltar, and wild foods remained abundant.
One indicator of climate shifts is the types of bones found at various time periods in the layers of cave crud. The layers associated with Neanderthals usually indicated warm, moist, woodland or forest. Woodland conditions were identified by the bones of aurochs, red deer, boar, cave bear, leopard, giant deer, and temperate rhinoceros.
It’s important to understand that the more recent sites, which are associated with humans, often indicate steppe-tundra conditions, when the land was cold, dry, open, and treeless. Steppe-tundra conditions were identified by the bones of woolly mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, horse, musk ox, ibex, moose, Artic fox, and reindeer.
The human supremacists regularly ridicule Neanderthals for displaying little innovation. For 300,000+ years, their primary weapon was the thrusting spear. Obviously, a stable and functional way of life was glaring evidence of low intelligence! But Neanderthals were woodland creatures who excelled at ambush hunting. For them, a thrusting spear was the perfect tool. For humans, who lived in steppe-tundra habitat, it was the opposite of excellent, because a wide open landscape had no trees or brush to conceal their presence. Their weapon was the javelin.
The latest technology is giving archaeologists the ability to extract more information from the stuff they dig up. For example, plant pollen. Long ago, hyenas ravenously devoured carcasses, including their intestines, which contained pollen from the surrounding vegetation. Fossilized hyena turds (coprolites) have preserved this pollen, allowing scientists to discover the mix of plants in the ecosystem during different time windows. This indicated current climate conditions.
Finlayson dismisses the notion that Neanderthals were driven to extinction by humans, and wonders if they may have resisted human expansion. He believes that an increasingly cold climate was shrinking their traditional woodland habitat, and fragmenting their population. After surviving numerous eras of cold, the latest one pushed them a bit too hard — bad luck drove them extinct.
One point Finlayson doesn’t mention is that Neanderthals emerged 300,000+ years ago in Eurasia, where they evolved in a temperate climate. Their bodies were stockier to give them better cold tolerance. Humans emerged in Africa maybe 300,000 years ago. They evolved in a tropical climate, where they developed better tolerance of heat, and became skilled at grassland hunting.
When humans wandered into the grasslands of Eastern Europe 36,000 years ago (the “European Serengeti”), their tropical bodies were not fine-tuned for freezing weather. At this point, their choices were to either to turn around and return to home sweet home, or innovate like crazy and struggle to survive in a hostile climate where large game was abundant.
The human supremacists shout that the humans were simply too smart to fail. They claim that a miracle occurred 50,000 years ago, when genetic mutations caused human intelligence to skyrocket. This was called the Great Leap Forward, or the Cognitive Revolution. Finlayson says “Bullshit!” Genetic research has found zero evidence of this.
What genetic research has found is clear evidence that Neanderthals and non-African humans interbred. East Asians have 2.3 to 2.6 percent Neanderthal DNA, and Western Eurasians have 1.8 to 2.5 percent. Markers of these hot romances are as old as 100,000 years ago, and as recent as 37,000 years. Today, humans of various ancestries carry different segments of Neanderthal DNA. Thus, up to 20 percent of the Neanderthal genome might still exist, scattered throughout the vast human herd.
Supremacists assert that only humans were brilliant enough to dine on marine life. Oddly, the Neanderthals at Gibraltar ate mollusks, seals, dolphins, herbivorous mammals, tortoises, and birds. But, but, but… only humans were smart enough to paint caves and make ornaments. Recent research is raising doubts (someone was apparently painting caves 64,800 years ago). Indeed, humans likely learned many tricks from the Neanderthals.
To make claims of cognitive superiority based on the artifacts of material culture is silly. The writing tools I used in 1970 were extremely crude compared to the laptop I’m using now. Has my brain become far more powerful? Compared to my grandparents, is my brain actually better?
Uncomfortable doubts are growing, with regard to the ultimate value of intelligence. Neanderthals lived for 300,000+ years, in a manner that had the appearance of genuine sustainability. They have not been associated with megafauna extinctions. Following the human colonization of Europe, there was a wave of megafauna extinctions, which occurred between 30,000 to 12,000 years ago.
Since then, aggressive cultures of our godlike species have blindsided every ecosystem on Earth. The supremacists leap to their feet, clapping, cheering, and celebrating the wonders of perpetual growth and progress. Big Mama Nature laughs and laughs, as she prepares some potent surprises to rubbish our illusions of grandiosity. Soon she’ll be serving us an all-you-can-eat banquet of humble pie.
For decades, many scholars have adopted the belief that we Homo sapiens were superior to Neanderthals. They imagine that when humans invaded Neanderthal territory, the inferior species was helplessly overwhelmed and exterminated. This belief is known as the replacement model, which assumed that we could never meet other humans without wiping them out. History is loaded with replacement stories.
Beliefs are based on assumptions, which are sometimes daffy balderdash. Over time, beliefs that pass from one generation to the next can mutate into illusions that are perceived to be certain truths. Human supremacists really annoy Finlayson, and he has written three books to spank them — Neanderthals and Modern Humans (2004), The Humans Who Went Extinct (2009), and The Smart Neanderthal (2019). The new book is an enjoyable, well written mystery story, in which the brainy hero (Finlayson) confronts the dodgy beliefs held by many mainstream scholars.
It’s not surprising that folks who have spent more than 30 years studying Neanderthals actually accumulate a lot of experiences and insights. They learn things that scholars in faraway college towns never do. The myth of progress is only a few centuries old, and it perceives that all previous generations were inferior — especially our prehistoric relatives. The human supremacists in academia have generated a list of advanced characteristics that Neanderthals lack. In his new book, Finlayson examines this list, item by item, and presents evidence to the contrary. He concludes that humans and Neanderthals were equally intelligent, but not equally lucky in the survival lottery.
Of all the prehistoric hominins, we know Neanderthals best, because we have discovered a number of sites where they lived in Eurasia. In caves, evidence of days past is far less likely to be blown or washed away, and more likely to be preserved and found. Over time, layers of stuff build up, with newer ones covering the old. Scientists assign dates to each layer, and document the artifacts found.
What makes the book especially interesting is that he uses his love of birds to support a number of his arguments. The caves at Gibraltar contain the remains of 160 species of birds. The region was once a wonderland for the winged ones, but not now. “Their world has been destroyed by civilized man in a few centuries.”
Human supremacists assert that dimwitted Neanderthals were incapable of catching speedy prey, like birds or hares. So Finlayson visited Spain, and watched an old gent attract 300 large vultures by putting out some carrion. They surrounded him, and happily took food from his hand. Another time, he went to an island off the coast of Scotland, where it was the breeding season for 150,000 gannets. None took flight as he strolled through them, instead they pecked his legs bloody.
Some birds respond to danger by flying away. Others, like the stone curlews, have natural coloration that provides excellent camouflage. When danger appears, they freeze, and become nearly invisible to predators. They only take flight if the intruder makes a sudden movement. Finlayson has calmly walked right past frozen curlews, and could have easily snatched them. Sometimes speedy hares will freeze in the presence of danger, allowing their camouflage to render them invisible. Finlayson has walked very close to frozen hares.
The 300,000+ year saga of Neanderthals was an era of roller coaster climate shifts. Most of their time on Earth was colder than average. Some climate shifts happened suddenly and sharply. Children were sometimes born in a steppe habitat which, decades earlier, had been woodland when their grandparents lived there.
Between the Arctic, and the Mediterranean, there were several climate zones — ice, tundra, steppe, and woodland. When the climate plunged into frigid periods, glaciers and ice sheets expanded in the north, which compressed the zones to the south. There were times when the ice sheet extended from Scandinavia to northern Germany, and covered most of the British Isles. At times, large areas of France were tundra. The Mediterranean Sea, a large body of warm water, moderated the climate of southern Europe, so the temperature swings were less intense in Gibraltar, and wild foods remained abundant.
One indicator of climate shifts is the types of bones found at various time periods in the layers of cave crud. The layers associated with Neanderthals usually indicated warm, moist, woodland or forest. Woodland conditions were identified by the bones of aurochs, red deer, boar, cave bear, leopard, giant deer, and temperate rhinoceros.
It’s important to understand that the more recent sites, which are associated with humans, often indicate steppe-tundra conditions, when the land was cold, dry, open, and treeless. Steppe-tundra conditions were identified by the bones of woolly mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, horse, musk ox, ibex, moose, Artic fox, and reindeer.
The human supremacists regularly ridicule Neanderthals for displaying little innovation. For 300,000+ years, their primary weapon was the thrusting spear. Obviously, a stable and functional way of life was glaring evidence of low intelligence! But Neanderthals were woodland creatures who excelled at ambush hunting. For them, a thrusting spear was the perfect tool. For humans, who lived in steppe-tundra habitat, it was the opposite of excellent, because a wide open landscape had no trees or brush to conceal their presence. Their weapon was the javelin.
The latest technology is giving archaeologists the ability to extract more information from the stuff they dig up. For example, plant pollen. Long ago, hyenas ravenously devoured carcasses, including their intestines, which contained pollen from the surrounding vegetation. Fossilized hyena turds (coprolites) have preserved this pollen, allowing scientists to discover the mix of plants in the ecosystem during different time windows. This indicated current climate conditions.
Finlayson dismisses the notion that Neanderthals were driven to extinction by humans, and wonders if they may have resisted human expansion. He believes that an increasingly cold climate was shrinking their traditional woodland habitat, and fragmenting their population. After surviving numerous eras of cold, the latest one pushed them a bit too hard — bad luck drove them extinct.
One point Finlayson doesn’t mention is that Neanderthals emerged 300,000+ years ago in Eurasia, where they evolved in a temperate climate. Their bodies were stockier to give them better cold tolerance. Humans emerged in Africa maybe 300,000 years ago. They evolved in a tropical climate, where they developed better tolerance of heat, and became skilled at grassland hunting.
When humans wandered into the grasslands of Eastern Europe 36,000 years ago (the “European Serengeti”), their tropical bodies were not fine-tuned for freezing weather. At this point, their choices were to either to turn around and return to home sweet home, or innovate like crazy and struggle to survive in a hostile climate where large game was abundant.
The human supremacists shout that the humans were simply too smart to fail. They claim that a miracle occurred 50,000 years ago, when genetic mutations caused human intelligence to skyrocket. This was called the Great Leap Forward, or the Cognitive Revolution. Finlayson says “Bullshit!” Genetic research has found zero evidence of this.
What genetic research has found is clear evidence that Neanderthals and non-African humans interbred. East Asians have 2.3 to 2.6 percent Neanderthal DNA, and Western Eurasians have 1.8 to 2.5 percent. Markers of these hot romances are as old as 100,000 years ago, and as recent as 37,000 years. Today, humans of various ancestries carry different segments of Neanderthal DNA. Thus, up to 20 percent of the Neanderthal genome might still exist, scattered throughout the vast human herd.
Supremacists assert that only humans were brilliant enough to dine on marine life. Oddly, the Neanderthals at Gibraltar ate mollusks, seals, dolphins, herbivorous mammals, tortoises, and birds. But, but, but… only humans were smart enough to paint caves and make ornaments. Recent research is raising doubts (someone was apparently painting caves 64,800 years ago). Indeed, humans likely learned many tricks from the Neanderthals.
To make claims of cognitive superiority based on the artifacts of material culture is silly. The writing tools I used in 1970 were extremely crude compared to the laptop I’m using now. Has my brain become far more powerful? Compared to my grandparents, is my brain actually better?
Uncomfortable doubts are growing, with regard to the ultimate value of intelligence. Neanderthals lived for 300,000+ years, in a manner that had the appearance of genuine sustainability. They have not been associated with megafauna extinctions. Following the human colonization of Europe, there was a wave of megafauna extinctions, which occurred between 30,000 to 12,000 years ago.
Since then, aggressive cultures of our godlike species have blindsided every ecosystem on Earth. The supremacists leap to their feet, clapping, cheering, and celebrating the wonders of perpetual growth and progress. Big Mama Nature laughs and laughs, as she prepares some potent surprises to rubbish our illusions of grandiosity. Soon she’ll be serving us an all-you-can-eat banquet of humble pie.
June 15, 2019
I really did not enjoy this book and found that besides the first and last chapter, the book is almost entirely not targeted for the non-specialist reader or someone who is not interested in ornithology.
Quite disappointed with it really.
Quite disappointed with it really.
March 17, 2019
The Smart Neanderthal by Clive Finlayson
This is an interesting and odd book.
The author, Clive Finlayson, is an anthropologist whose base of operations is Gibraltar. Finlayson has two scientific passions, bird-watching and Neanderthals. In this book, he brings the two together as a way of providing insights into the lives of Neanderthals. Finlayson makes the point that while most of the megafauna that interacted with Neanderthals have long gone extinct, the birds we see today are the same species that the Neanderthals saw.
The book's principal focus is the claim that Neanderthals were less cognitively developed than modern homo sapiens. The argument is made that the homo sapien's cognitive advantage gave them a greater ability to exploit the environment by hunting smaller and faster animals, while cognitively limited Neanderthals were restricted to slow and large animals. Finlayson argues against this position by pointing out that Neanderthals could easily exploit the bird population and that there is archeological evidence that Neanderthals captured raptors for their feathers. The evidence comes in the form of cut marks on the fossilized wing bones of birds that are consistent with taking feathers. The speculation is that the feathers were taken for display and that perhaps Neanderthals taught homo sapiens to wear feathers as ornaments.
One point made by Finlayson that was particularly interesting was his explanation for why it took modern homo sapiens approximately 60,000 years to move from the Middle East to Europe, namely the Neanderthals kept them out of Europe. That is a simple and direct explanation, but it conjures the idea of a border way lasting fifteen times longer than human history.
Astounding.
The book has drawbacks. If you are a birder, you will find the long descriptions of birds fascinating, but if you are not, then they may be something to skim through. Likewise, Finlayson wants to give the book a human feel with descriptions of his life as a birdwatcher and his family's work on Gibraltar. Some of this is interesting but it gives the book a somewhat scattered feel as a quasi-travelogue, quasi-text.
Nonetheless, I did find the text interesting. It does offer some insights into Neanderthal life from an unusual angle.
This is an interesting and odd book.
The author, Clive Finlayson, is an anthropologist whose base of operations is Gibraltar. Finlayson has two scientific passions, bird-watching and Neanderthals. In this book, he brings the two together as a way of providing insights into the lives of Neanderthals. Finlayson makes the point that while most of the megafauna that interacted with Neanderthals have long gone extinct, the birds we see today are the same species that the Neanderthals saw.
The book's principal focus is the claim that Neanderthals were less cognitively developed than modern homo sapiens. The argument is made that the homo sapien's cognitive advantage gave them a greater ability to exploit the environment by hunting smaller and faster animals, while cognitively limited Neanderthals were restricted to slow and large animals. Finlayson argues against this position by pointing out that Neanderthals could easily exploit the bird population and that there is archeological evidence that Neanderthals captured raptors for their feathers. The evidence comes in the form of cut marks on the fossilized wing bones of birds that are consistent with taking feathers. The speculation is that the feathers were taken for display and that perhaps Neanderthals taught homo sapiens to wear feathers as ornaments.
One point made by Finlayson that was particularly interesting was his explanation for why it took modern homo sapiens approximately 60,000 years to move from the Middle East to Europe, namely the Neanderthals kept them out of Europe. That is a simple and direct explanation, but it conjures the idea of a border way lasting fifteen times longer than human history.
Astounding.
The book has drawbacks. If you are a birder, you will find the long descriptions of birds fascinating, but if you are not, then they may be something to skim through. Likewise, Finlayson wants to give the book a human feel with descriptions of his life as a birdwatcher and his family's work on Gibraltar. Some of this is interesting but it gives the book a somewhat scattered feel as a quasi-travelogue, quasi-text.
Nonetheless, I did find the text interesting. It does offer some insights into Neanderthal life from an unusual angle.
November 17, 2019
100% niche ornithology..
I'm mad but this is probably a great book for someone.
I'm mad but this is probably a great book for someone.
January 30, 2023
3.5 stars rounded up (As an audio book, 2.5 stars only)
This was a book very much out of my comfort zone not only in that it was nonfiction of which I read a limited amount, not only about history which I read even less, but about prehistory, a topic I am completely unversed in. Add to that I was listening to an audio book, a format I’m unused to and which had a narrator whose intonation didn’t really work for me, and you can see why I might encourage you to take my thoughts with a grain of salt.
Having said that I found this is a very engaging, easy to understand book for a layperson like myself. There were a few terms that were unfamiliar but not enough to take me out of the book. It is also a very personal story that is clearly close to the authors heart having worked with Neanderthals for decades, specifically in excavating Gorham’s cave and others on the island of Gibraltar. Finlayasons’ premise is that the idea that Neanderthals were somehow lesser in a cognitive sense than modern humans, or behaviorally modern, that came from Africa is an inaccurate one. To be considered the same as these modern humans, the Neanderthals would have to show evidence of specific hunting methods, the use of jewelry or adornment, planning and other tasks that require a certain level of cognition. Using evidence he and his team have found in the caves, but primarily the bones of 150 species of different birds that they have uncovered, he attempts to show that Neanderthals have been underestimated, (at the same time making the point how impoverished our own world has become in terms of wildlife.)
Much of this assumption was gathered in field research, watching various species of birds around the world that would have been around at the same time as the Neanderthals or at least very similar to those species; birds such as griffon vultures, long tailed ducks crows, golden eagles etc. The stories of his travels, sitting in hides and observing different birds, in extreme heat and cold were some of the most interesting parts of the book. The idea that Neanderthals could not have captured birds, in particular fast-moving ones are explored by observation and by examples from hunter-gatherer societies such as the Native Americans.
He explains how the archaeological record can only provide a certain amount of evidence about past lives because only certain things remain in the ground for so many centuries. Textiles, netting and other tools that did not utilize stone or metals simply are not there and thus we are only getting a limited picture of what life was really like from the artifacts that we are able to uncover. As he writes in the book ‘absence of evidence is not evidence of abscene’. Different Neanderthal sites have revealed that there was prey specialization, that some sites had a specific purpose and that Neanderthals knew when and where resources were available. It is also quite possible that modern humans learnt from Neanderthals as we know they coexisted for a significant period of time.
Finlayson writes that new evidence and findings come out all the time about what modern humans were capable of and so too with Neanderthals, researchers get pipped at the post when publishing and you can sense that often this research is very personal to them, understandably so when it involves a life’s work. As someone who isn’t an expert Finlayson seems to make a strong case for the title of the book but others better informed will have to tell me if that is really the case.
This was a book very much out of my comfort zone not only in that it was nonfiction of which I read a limited amount, not only about history which I read even less, but about prehistory, a topic I am completely unversed in. Add to that I was listening to an audio book, a format I’m unused to and which had a narrator whose intonation didn’t really work for me, and you can see why I might encourage you to take my thoughts with a grain of salt.
Having said that I found this is a very engaging, easy to understand book for a layperson like myself. There were a few terms that were unfamiliar but not enough to take me out of the book. It is also a very personal story that is clearly close to the authors heart having worked with Neanderthals for decades, specifically in excavating Gorham’s cave and others on the island of Gibraltar. Finlayasons’ premise is that the idea that Neanderthals were somehow lesser in a cognitive sense than modern humans, or behaviorally modern, that came from Africa is an inaccurate one. To be considered the same as these modern humans, the Neanderthals would have to show evidence of specific hunting methods, the use of jewelry or adornment, planning and other tasks that require a certain level of cognition. Using evidence he and his team have found in the caves, but primarily the bones of 150 species of different birds that they have uncovered, he attempts to show that Neanderthals have been underestimated, (at the same time making the point how impoverished our own world has become in terms of wildlife.)
Much of this assumption was gathered in field research, watching various species of birds around the world that would have been around at the same time as the Neanderthals or at least very similar to those species; birds such as griffon vultures, long tailed ducks crows, golden eagles etc. The stories of his travels, sitting in hides and observing different birds, in extreme heat and cold were some of the most interesting parts of the book. The idea that Neanderthals could not have captured birds, in particular fast-moving ones are explored by observation and by examples from hunter-gatherer societies such as the Native Americans.
He explains how the archaeological record can only provide a certain amount of evidence about past lives because only certain things remain in the ground for so many centuries. Textiles, netting and other tools that did not utilize stone or metals simply are not there and thus we are only getting a limited picture of what life was really like from the artifacts that we are able to uncover. As he writes in the book ‘absence of evidence is not evidence of abscene’. Different Neanderthal sites have revealed that there was prey specialization, that some sites had a specific purpose and that Neanderthals knew when and where resources were available. It is also quite possible that modern humans learnt from Neanderthals as we know they coexisted for a significant period of time.
Finlayson writes that new evidence and findings come out all the time about what modern humans were capable of and so too with Neanderthals, researchers get pipped at the post when publishing and you can sense that often this research is very personal to them, understandably so when it involves a life’s work. As someone who isn’t an expert Finlayson seems to make a strong case for the title of the book but others better informed will have to tell me if that is really the case.
May 16, 2020
A book that should have been an article. Too much of the author's life here, too slow on the birds, and too little on the Neanderthals. Mind you, what could have been put in a (longish) article was interesting stuff!
October 23, 2019
In The Smart Neanderthal, Clive Finlayson argues for a re-evaluation of how we perceive modern humans vis-à-vis the other hominins who shared the planet with them until relatively recently, particularly the Neanderthal. He sets out to show that Neanderthal exhibited many of the same behaviors that, till now, have been attributed solely to modern humans, including the exploitation of a wide variety of food sources (including birds and fish), and the use of ornamentation and the presence of ritual.
Finlayson does this by closely examining a variety of Neanderthal and modern human sites across Europe and into western Asia, incorporating both his and other’s research.
If you’re interested in evolutionary biology and archaeology, then I recommend this book.
Finlayson does this by closely examining a variety of Neanderthal and modern human sites across Europe and into western Asia, incorporating both his and other’s research.
If you’re interested in evolutionary biology and archaeology, then I recommend this book.
July 11, 2019
An interesting, if disorganized and self-indulgent, look at Neanderthal natural history by a bird watcher in a rather forced combination of a bird-watching journal and research notes. The Neanderthals probably didn't care how many modern human beings had sighted a specific bird when they roasted it up on a stick in a cave, and neither do I. I kept waiting for insights about Neanderthals arising from the extremely detailed descriptions of bird behaviors, and, aside from the initial chapter, was quite disappointed. Still worth reading.
July 3, 2024
'The Smart Neanderthal' By Clive Finlayson is an exploration of Neanderthal ‘natural history’. What is the world they lived in like? What level of labour and intelligence did it require to successfully survive in it for many generations? That is what Finlayson aimed to answer with this book. As an ornithologist, the natural history focuses on birds for the most part. The birds that existed alongside Neanderthals, what did they catch and hunt, what did they eat and not eat, what did they do with the excavated remains, etc etc. It is an incredibly fascinating study and I recommend reading it if you wish to delve deeper into the world Neanderthals lived in.
For the most part, the book deals with humanizing the Neanderthals. I have some favourite quotes from the book that I will include regarding this topic.
As you see, the author prepares us to imagine that we live in the world of the Neanderthals, the plants and animals and landscapes that exist, and put yourself in their shoes – what kind of equipment would you be using, and what sort of innovations would you want to meet your needs? And as mentioned, specifically when it comes to the avian family.
I must voice criticism with some of his speculations about his bird analysis, which accidentally puts down his theory of high Neanderthal cognition. They relate to activity that are invisible in the archaeological record. Here they are:
1. Birds migrate and nest in specific places and must be caught in specific ways. This means Neanderthals must be intelligent enough to locate them, plan their capture, and remember their behaviour and migration patterns. It certainly does require intelligence, but I wouldn’t say it’s special intelligence that would be unique to the homo genus. It is a skill shared by most if not all living things. Here is what Finlayson has to say about it:
Well, couldn’t we argue the same for the bears of brooks falls who recognize the salmon spawning every summer and fall and come to the location on time to catch them? I see where he’s coming, but recognizing patterns from the natural world is not a particularly huge feat.
2. The author assumes that since Nenaderthals caught nearly every bird species available locally, that means they were focused on catching birds, which are mostly nocturnal, which means: Neanderthals have night vision!!!! Yes. That is the theory, which is very contradictory. Here is what Finlayson says:
I totally understand that it would be easier to catch birds at night, but that would not signify night vision. Modern Humans have been active at night long before electric lights were invented. Why would the Neanderthals need night vision for that? I find it very contradictory to his case. I think Neanderthals would be smart enough (and brave) to navigate their local land with a small torch and the moonlight to catch something in the dark.
There is also another argument that I found rather silly. Here is how it goes:
Now the argument here is: What if the Neanderthals were too stupid to catch birds, how did the birds end up butchered in the cave? Another animal? I found that to be very funny, because we are starting to assume that an owl or a lynx is cognitively far superior to a Neanderthal, which destroys the whole argument. I know the author is trying to get at every argument, but this was rather comically taken too far :P
Besides these nitpicks, it was an absolute joy to read Finlayson’s work. I have not only learnt about Neanderthals, but also about birds. And I particularly like his view point of learning about Neanderthals by recreating their “natural history”. It’s a very smart approach that can give us results on interpreting Neanderthal’s lives and lived experience.
Some interesting things I took note of:
Neanderthals preferred birds with black feathers, and possibly used them fro adornment. Here is a quote to follow:
In his effort to learn how these fast-moving animals can be caught, Finlayson discovered it is actually quite easy: some only require that you slowly come up behind them and gently hold them while they are busy eating; some can be lured towards you by mimicking their mate calls; others can be lured in by food, so much so that you can have a wild bird eating from your hand (in the case of griffon vultures); or birds that arrive too tired to fly anymore after migration and can’t fly away from you. There are many more examples, but these are the ones that stuck to me. (Note: It’s those reasons that additionally made me think it is silly to think Neanderthals require night vision to catch birds. Look at all those methods!)
Again, I appreciate Finlayson’s approach to understanding Neanderthal’s world by studying their environment and how they would have acquired their sustenance. Another quote:
If you were interested enough to read this far into the review, then I suggest you give ‘The Smart Neanderthal’ a read.
(I include a lot of quotes from the book to let the reader know the tone of the book and what to expect when reading it)
For the most part, the book deals with humanizing the Neanderthals. I have some favourite quotes from the book that I will include regarding this topic.
“...absence of evidence is not evidence of absence... The majority of material culture consist of organic raw materials which are highly perishable. Their absence from the archaeology of paleolithic sites has completely distorted our interpretations of the sites, including the behaviour of the humans who inhabited the site.” (p.7)
“Material culture does not necessarily equate to behavioural capacities. If it did, then a scientist from the future looking at the material culture associated with my generation and that of my grandparents would conclude that they were cognitively inferior to me...”(p.14)
As you see, the author prepares us to imagine that we live in the world of the Neanderthals, the plants and animals and landscapes that exist, and put yourself in their shoes – what kind of equipment would you be using, and what sort of innovations would you want to meet your needs? And as mentioned, specifically when it comes to the avian family.
I must voice criticism with some of his speculations about his bird analysis, which accidentally puts down his theory of high Neanderthal cognition. They relate to activity that are invisible in the archaeological record. Here they are:
1. Birds migrate and nest in specific places and must be caught in specific ways. This means Neanderthals must be intelligent enough to locate them, plan their capture, and remember their behaviour and migration patterns. It certainly does require intelligence, but I wouldn’t say it’s special intelligence that would be unique to the homo genus. It is a skill shared by most if not all living things. Here is what Finlayson has to say about it:
“...the eggs of coots, crakes, stilts, and terns would have been hard to find, requiring mental skills and memory from previous years, but easy to collect once located.” (p.72)
“The Neanderthals would not have known the journey the birds undertook but their arrival at particular times of the year would have been a seasonal marker. The recognition of such seasonal markers is another measure of cognitive capacities.” (p.77)
Well, couldn’t we argue the same for the bears of brooks falls who recognize the salmon spawning every summer and fall and come to the location on time to catch them? I see where he’s coming, but recognizing patterns from the natural world is not a particularly huge feat.
2. The author assumes that since Nenaderthals caught nearly every bird species available locally, that means they were focused on catching birds, which are mostly nocturnal, which means: Neanderthals have night vision!!!! Yes. That is the theory, which is very contradictory. Here is what Finlayson says:
“I have previously argued that Modern Humans succeeded in the conditions of the tropical savannahs by focusing their activities in the middle of the day when it was hottest and predators and competitors were asleep. This led to hair loss, sweat glands, and a dependence
on water. Neanderthals living in cooler climates than modern humans would not have benefited from middle-of-the-day activities in the same way. Their hunting strategy was one of ambush hunting and what better time to practise it than in the hours when low light made them blend into the background? Geraldine and I have discussed this many times, long before the eye socket paper came out, and we think that the case in favour is persuasive.” (p.93)
I totally understand that it would be easier to catch birds at night, but that would not signify night vision. Modern Humans have been active at night long before electric lights were invented. Why would the Neanderthals need night vision for that? I find it very contradictory to his case. I think Neanderthals would be smart enough (and brave) to navigate their local land with a small torch and the moonlight to catch something in the dark.
There is also another argument that I found rather silly. Here is how it goes:
“If it wasn’t the Neanderthals then how were all these birds getting into the caves? Could it be carnivores or maybe a large owl? There were certainly candidates available. In the caves we had found remains of Iberian lynx, wild cat, and red fox. These mammals could have been catching birds and bringing them to the cave.” (p.127)
Now the argument here is: What if the Neanderthals were too stupid to catch birds, how did the birds end up butchered in the cave? Another animal? I found that to be very funny, because we are starting to assume that an owl or a lynx is cognitively far superior to a Neanderthal, which destroys the whole argument. I know the author is trying to get at every argument, but this was rather comically taken too far :P
Besides these nitpicks, it was an absolute joy to read Finlayson’s work. I have not only learnt about Neanderthals, but also about birds. And I particularly like his view point of learning about Neanderthals by recreating their “natural history”. It’s a very smart approach that can give us results on interpreting Neanderthal’s lives and lived experience.
Some interesting things I took note of:
Neanderthals preferred birds with black feathers, and possibly used them fro adornment. Here is a quote to follow:
“As more bones were examined, more evidence came up that convinced us that the Neanderthals had somehow been catching these larger birds, not for food but in order to take their feathers. Wing bones had the most cut marks left by the Neanderthals’ tools. There were other markers that also identified human activity on the bones but, in contrast, we found very little to implicate other carnivores or birds of prey. It was clear to us early in 2011 that the Neanderthals were taking birds of prey and corvids for their feathers which, we thought, were then being used for adornment or other similar use. Not only were Neanderthals capable of catching birds for food—Stiner and Klein’s inaccessible fast-moving prey— they were using them for symbolic purposes. That put feathers in the same club as pendants and beads, which Mellars had stated was a clear marker of belonging to humanity’s premier league.” (p.130)
In his effort to learn how these fast-moving animals can be caught, Finlayson discovered it is actually quite easy: some only require that you slowly come up behind them and gently hold them while they are busy eating; some can be lured towards you by mimicking their mate calls; others can be lured in by food, so much so that you can have a wild bird eating from your hand (in the case of griffon vultures); or birds that arrive too tired to fly anymore after migration and can’t fly away from you. There are many more examples, but these are the ones that stuck to me. (Note: It’s those reasons that additionally made me think it is silly to think Neanderthals require night vision to catch birds. Look at all those methods!)
Again, I appreciate Finlayson’s approach to understanding Neanderthal’s world by studying their environment and how they would have acquired their sustenance. Another quote:
“It was time to drop the idea that all birds could be classified into a single type (such as fast-moving). The Neanderthals were great naturalists as their lives depended on it. Aware of the beautiful complexity of Nature they would have laughed had anyone simplistically suggested to them that all birds could be lumped into a single entity according to their powers of locomotion. That false notion could only have originated in a world divorced from Nature.” (p.154)
If you were interested enough to read this far into the review, then I suggest you give ‘The Smart Neanderthal’ a read.
(I include a lot of quotes from the book to let the reader know the tone of the book and what to expect when reading it)
March 21, 2019
The Smart Neanderthal is an important work which aims to reappraise Neanderthal hunting abilities, their grasp of the natural world, and their cognition and ability for symbolic thought. In the majority of cases the author is not only convincing but should be congratulated for knocking down some of the crude mistakes and generalisations made by earlier anthropologists and archaeologists. I do have some reservations, however.
The misleading strapline is: bird catching, cave art and the cognitive revolution. There is plenty on bird catching, almost nothing on cave art, and little on the cognitive revolution. However, unlike other reviewers, I don’t have a problem with the emphasis this author places on the natural world. Such emphasis is vital.
Essentially, this is a book which does not knock over prevailing views of the cognitive revolution, but which does almost as valuable a service in clearing away absurd black-and-white generalisations about the Neanderthals (especially their hunting skills) in favour of something much more nuanced and accurate, which the author provides by way of his decades of bird watching experience.
His main thesis is that we have to understand the Neanderthals via natural history. Across Europe, Neanderthals lived in very different environments and had very different diets, so they must be understood on this basis. The book spends a lot of time detailing bird species, their distribution, their distribution in confirmed Neanderthal sites (notably caves in Gibraltar, which Finlayson has spent decades excavating), and their habits. All of this is vital, albeit a tad long-winded. The main point of this book is to open our eyes to the variety of food sources many Neanderthals had access to, which the author does superbly.
Linked to this is Finlayson’s other main point, that the Neanderthals were the same as us cognitively. He rightly opposes earlier, cruder interpretations, and gives his own speculation, all of which is welcome. But here I think there is not enough supporting evidence. The material on feather colour and raptor talons is absolutely fascinating and will surely stand as a testament to Finlayson’s work, but the evidence for symbolic thought like ours seems slight. Of course, as is noted, lack of evidence is not evidence of lack.
My main worry with this second strand of the book is that speech and anatomy evidence suggests a qualitative difference in cognitive ability, not a quantitative one. As Lieberman & Crelin showed in their ground-breaking work, Neanderthals would have had great difficulty or been unable to pronounce the [i], [u] and [a] vowels, in addition to being unable to pronounce g and k consonants. The inability to pronounce [i] is particularly significant, since it is used in all human language as the main intelligibility marker. In addition, Neanderthal speech would have sounded nasal compared with ours. All these factors limit the ability (unconscious in all modern humans) to recognise the formant frequency of heard speech, which reduces speech capacity. Neanderthals undoubtedly had complex speech, but they would not in my opinion have been so exceptional as homo sapiens. This, to me, seems a qualitative difference not a quantitative one, acting against Finlayson’s hypothesis that there was effectively no cognitive difference between the two species.
Having said that, this book is significant, valuable and well worth reading. The author’s skill and experience in understanding birds translates well into his archaeological work, bringing a deep new insight into Neanderthal life. This emphasis on placing the Neanderthals into their environment is particularly brilliant – a welcome new aspect to our understanding of human origins.
The misleading strapline is: bird catching, cave art and the cognitive revolution. There is plenty on bird catching, almost nothing on cave art, and little on the cognitive revolution. However, unlike other reviewers, I don’t have a problem with the emphasis this author places on the natural world. Such emphasis is vital.
Essentially, this is a book which does not knock over prevailing views of the cognitive revolution, but which does almost as valuable a service in clearing away absurd black-and-white generalisations about the Neanderthals (especially their hunting skills) in favour of something much more nuanced and accurate, which the author provides by way of his decades of bird watching experience.
His main thesis is that we have to understand the Neanderthals via natural history. Across Europe, Neanderthals lived in very different environments and had very different diets, so they must be understood on this basis. The book spends a lot of time detailing bird species, their distribution, their distribution in confirmed Neanderthal sites (notably caves in Gibraltar, which Finlayson has spent decades excavating), and their habits. All of this is vital, albeit a tad long-winded. The main point of this book is to open our eyes to the variety of food sources many Neanderthals had access to, which the author does superbly.
Linked to this is Finlayson’s other main point, that the Neanderthals were the same as us cognitively. He rightly opposes earlier, cruder interpretations, and gives his own speculation, all of which is welcome. But here I think there is not enough supporting evidence. The material on feather colour and raptor talons is absolutely fascinating and will surely stand as a testament to Finlayson’s work, but the evidence for symbolic thought like ours seems slight. Of course, as is noted, lack of evidence is not evidence of lack.
My main worry with this second strand of the book is that speech and anatomy evidence suggests a qualitative difference in cognitive ability, not a quantitative one. As Lieberman & Crelin showed in their ground-breaking work, Neanderthals would have had great difficulty or been unable to pronounce the [i], [u] and [a] vowels, in addition to being unable to pronounce g and k consonants. The inability to pronounce [i] is particularly significant, since it is used in all human language as the main intelligibility marker. In addition, Neanderthal speech would have sounded nasal compared with ours. All these factors limit the ability (unconscious in all modern humans) to recognise the formant frequency of heard speech, which reduces speech capacity. Neanderthals undoubtedly had complex speech, but they would not in my opinion have been so exceptional as homo sapiens. This, to me, seems a qualitative difference not a quantitative one, acting against Finlayson’s hypothesis that there was effectively no cognitive difference between the two species.
Having said that, this book is significant, valuable and well worth reading. The author’s skill and experience in understanding birds translates well into his archaeological work, bringing a deep new insight into Neanderthal life. This emphasis on placing the Neanderthals into their environment is particularly brilliant – a welcome new aspect to our understanding of human origins.
August 13, 2025
Clive Finlayson’s The Smart Neanderthal is the kind of book that takes the comfortable armchair of conventional wisdom, rips the cushions open, and scatters the stuffing just to show there’s been something valuable hiding inside all along. With meticulous research that would make most archaeologists clutch their stratigraphy charts in admiration (or mild panic), Finlayson builds a compelling case for rethinking our mental image of Neanderthals; not as lumbering extras from a prehistoric soap opera, but as adaptable, intelligent, and culturally complex humans in their own right.
At its core, the book is a sustained reminder that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. For far too long, the scientific and popular imagination has been shaped by partial evidence, interpreted with a mix of overconfidence and narrative convenience. Finlayson makes it clear how easy it is for people (whether in academia or popular writing) to take those fragments and spin them into authoritative “truths” that then circulate unchecked, calcifying into the public consciousness. By contrast, his approach is to lean on the slow, careful accumulation of evidence, resisting the urge to leap to easy conclusions.
This isn’t sloppy revisionism, replacing one caricature with another. Instead, Finlayson deploys an arsenal of evidence, ecological data, archaeological finds, and a flair for synthesis, to methodically dismantle outdated assumptions. It’s like watching a polite but devastating courtroom cross-examination of the “Neanderthals were dumb” stereotype.
Yes, there are occasional detours into the academic projects and ambitions of family members, which feel about as essential to the argument as an appendix on the author’s favorite sandwich. Still, these asides are brief enough not to undermine the thrust of the work; more like mildly distracting background chatter while the main speaker delivers a very solid presentation.
In the end, this is research-driven storytelling at its best: deeply informed, utterly persuasive, and unafraid to suggest that maybe, just maybe, our species doesn’t have a monopoly on cleverness. By the time you close the book, you may find yourself mentally apologizing to the nearest cave painting you’ve ever misjudged.
At its core, the book is a sustained reminder that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. For far too long, the scientific and popular imagination has been shaped by partial evidence, interpreted with a mix of overconfidence and narrative convenience. Finlayson makes it clear how easy it is for people (whether in academia or popular writing) to take those fragments and spin them into authoritative “truths” that then circulate unchecked, calcifying into the public consciousness. By contrast, his approach is to lean on the slow, careful accumulation of evidence, resisting the urge to leap to easy conclusions.
This isn’t sloppy revisionism, replacing one caricature with another. Instead, Finlayson deploys an arsenal of evidence, ecological data, archaeological finds, and a flair for synthesis, to methodically dismantle outdated assumptions. It’s like watching a polite but devastating courtroom cross-examination of the “Neanderthals were dumb” stereotype.
Yes, there are occasional detours into the academic projects and ambitions of family members, which feel about as essential to the argument as an appendix on the author’s favorite sandwich. Still, these asides are brief enough not to undermine the thrust of the work; more like mildly distracting background chatter while the main speaker delivers a very solid presentation.
In the end, this is research-driven storytelling at its best: deeply informed, utterly persuasive, and unafraid to suggest that maybe, just maybe, our species doesn’t have a monopoly on cleverness. By the time you close the book, you may find yourself mentally apologizing to the nearest cave painting you’ve ever misjudged.
November 12, 2025
If I didn't take away anything else from this concentrated study by Finlayson, it is clear to me how extensive and incredibly specific paleoanthropologists and other scientists and historians are in their research of human evolution. First and foremost, the author is an ornithologist whose interest in Neanderthals is viewed through that lens. As such, this book seems to be more about birds than Neanderthals, but Finlayson is laying the groundwork for his contribution to a larger conclusion that has been widely accepted in recent years among those who study Neanderthals. They weren't cognitively inferior to the various homo species that survived them. They just didn't have the same advantages as those who followed them. Also, previous analogies of the human evolutionary tree and the leap to modern humans are probably more like a thick shrub and a slow progression.
With a thorough examination of bird remains and fossils at established Neanderthal sites mainly in Gibraltar, the author brings to light new evidence to dispel outdated theories about the Neanderthal, and thus our relationship with them. He goes into detail about how important birds were to Neanderthals, not only as a source of food, but also for tools and adornment. He carefully illustrates how these early humans would have had no trouble capturing birds and understanding how to use them for survival and for creative aesthetics.
Finlayson's primary objective here is to challenge preconceptions of the cognitive gap between Neanderthals and modern humans, even revealing near the end of the book the discovery of Neanderthal cave art, an achievement that was once attributed only to Cro-Magnum and later hominids. I can remember teaching early world history classes back in the 1980s when the broad assumption was traces of pollen residue were about the only indication that Neanderthals may have had social and artistic sensibilities. More recent work like this book leave those early theories and conclusions in the dust. Thanks to ongoing work in this field of study, we can now imagine Neanderthals having their own distinct art forms and rituals that suggest an intellect far beyond the old cartoonish caveman stereotypes of the past.
With a thorough examination of bird remains and fossils at established Neanderthal sites mainly in Gibraltar, the author brings to light new evidence to dispel outdated theories about the Neanderthal, and thus our relationship with them. He goes into detail about how important birds were to Neanderthals, not only as a source of food, but also for tools and adornment. He carefully illustrates how these early humans would have had no trouble capturing birds and understanding how to use them for survival and for creative aesthetics.
Finlayson's primary objective here is to challenge preconceptions of the cognitive gap between Neanderthals and modern humans, even revealing near the end of the book the discovery of Neanderthal cave art, an achievement that was once attributed only to Cro-Magnum and later hominids. I can remember teaching early world history classes back in the 1980s when the broad assumption was traces of pollen residue were about the only indication that Neanderthals may have had social and artistic sensibilities. More recent work like this book leave those early theories and conclusions in the dust. Thanks to ongoing work in this field of study, we can now imagine Neanderthals having their own distinct art forms and rituals that suggest an intellect far beyond the old cartoonish caveman stereotypes of the past.
April 23, 2023
Actually there was more about birds than I was interested in, but the intersection of bird study with Neanderthal study was fascinating. Description of birding expeditions was more interesting than the lists of birds here and there; description of excavation strategies was extremely helpful in understanding better how the process is done.
Finlayson has a thesis that has become more common these days: Neanderthals were more cognitively able than they have been given credit for being. He approaches it through studying the birds found in the Neanderthal caves, bird habitats and behavior. He challenges the then current view that our earliest ancestors could capture and eat only slow moving animals, while more advanced ancestors could develop the skills to hunt faster animals like birds and rabbits. The presence of bird remains in the Neanderthal caves is one argument. The behavior of birds that count on camouflage, so freeze rather than flee is another. The behavior of nesting birds yet another, showing a need for Neanderthals to observe, remember, and plan the timing of their hunts rather than mere chance at capturing whatever animal came by.
He also explores ornamentation and symbolic behaviors. With the help of other experts, bones are studied. Bones are separated as brought into the caves by humans or by animals. Marks showing cooking and use of tools are explored. Some birds are shown to have marks on wing bones only, suggesting their value was feathers for decoration rather than for meat--decoration being another feature reserved for early modern humans, not Neanderthals, at the time.
There are listings at the end of species mentioned through the book; it would have been more useful as an index with pages listed so that the interested could refer back to the referencess. An index would also have been helpful to identify the many mentioned people who worked on various aspects of the studies to aid someone interested in specific scientists. But of greater weight than the absences is the scale of data elevating the reputation of Neanderthals.
Finlayson has a thesis that has become more common these days: Neanderthals were more cognitively able than they have been given credit for being. He approaches it through studying the birds found in the Neanderthal caves, bird habitats and behavior. He challenges the then current view that our earliest ancestors could capture and eat only slow moving animals, while more advanced ancestors could develop the skills to hunt faster animals like birds and rabbits. The presence of bird remains in the Neanderthal caves is one argument. The behavior of birds that count on camouflage, so freeze rather than flee is another. The behavior of nesting birds yet another, showing a need for Neanderthals to observe, remember, and plan the timing of their hunts rather than mere chance at capturing whatever animal came by.
He also explores ornamentation and symbolic behaviors. With the help of other experts, bones are studied. Bones are separated as brought into the caves by humans or by animals. Marks showing cooking and use of tools are explored. Some birds are shown to have marks on wing bones only, suggesting their value was feathers for decoration rather than for meat--decoration being another feature reserved for early modern humans, not Neanderthals, at the time.
There are listings at the end of species mentioned through the book; it would have been more useful as an index with pages listed so that the interested could refer back to the referencess. An index would also have been helpful to identify the many mentioned people who worked on various aspects of the studies to aid someone interested in specific scientists. But of greater weight than the absences is the scale of data elevating the reputation of Neanderthals.
September 1, 2026
[the] sweeping statements made by some archaeologists, such as birds are fast-moving prey or hard to catch, are gross overgeneralizations which reveal an absence of natural history understanding, an understanding that intelligent Neanderthals would have had. [loc. 1382]
Finlayson is a keen ornithologist and archaeologist who lives in Gibraltar: much of this book is devoted to his excavations at the Gorham's Cave system, and to his ornithological expeditions in Gibraltar and southern Spain. His aim in this short book is to prove that Neanderthals were cognitive equals to modern humans: 'they made blades; they made complex tools; they had personal ornaments in the form of eagle feathers; they used ochre either to paint themselves or to make paintings, or both; they made engravings in cave walls; and they had sophisticated economic and social organization that included detailed planning of hunting activities at specific times of the year for particular prey. The prey often included birds.' [loc. 2678].
Though his prose is occasionally lacklustre, the sense of scientific excitement comes across strongly -- as does the grind of archaeological excavation, the care which must be taken with each specimen. His descriptions of observing eagles, vultures and corvids in the wild, acquiring an understanding of their habits and behaviour in the same way as Neanderthals may have done, are compelling. And I gained a better understanding of how climate change (the Ice Age and its aftermath) would have affected Neanderthal populations, fragmenting their territory and isolating communities.
Read because: I've been fascinated by Neanderthals, and by their differences to modern humans, since I first read The Clan of the Cave Bear (which was impeccably researched, though some of the data is dated now).
April 27, 2021
I've been fascinated by Neanderthals ever since I read Golding's heartbreaking and beautiful The Inheritors as a young teen. So of course I bought Finlayson's book for the library. This was my second attempt at reading it, and it's fascinating.
Why did it take me two tries to get through it, then? Two reasons. First, as Finlayson states from the outset, the book does not tell a story. Instead, it describes a scientific process. Second, Finlayson's style is rather basic and choppy, and at times a bit repetitious. But his meaning is always clear, as is his intention.
Mr. Finlayson--like me--may be a bit biased in favor of Neanderthals, but his goal in this book is to take the reader on a journey of scientific exploration. The questions he asks and answers are:
1. What sort of bird bones, and other bones, have been found in caves Neanderthals were known to use?
2. Do we have proof that the Neanderthal people caught these birds? If so, what did they use them for?
3. From these answers, can we extrapolate anything about Neanderthal society and intelligence?
On the way, Mr. Finlayson also discusses bird migration (I had no idea it was so hard for raptors to cross open bodies of water), climate change, bird behavior, and more.
And it works. At least, it works for me as a reader. I am convinced Neanderthals in Gibraltar really did catch birds, and that they ate some and used others for their feathers. It's clear that catching birds would require planning and detailed knowledge. It's clear Neanderthals--though as mysterious as ever in some ways (we will never know why they valued eagle feathers)--really were smart, and fully human. To me, Mr. Finlayson proves his point. And he does so by combining natural history and archaeology in a novel and exciting way.
Thus, I'm upping this to four stars in spite of some awkwardness in the writing.
Why did it take me two tries to get through it, then? Two reasons. First, as Finlayson states from the outset, the book does not tell a story. Instead, it describes a scientific process. Second, Finlayson's style is rather basic and choppy, and at times a bit repetitious. But his meaning is always clear, as is his intention.
Mr. Finlayson--like me--may be a bit biased in favor of Neanderthals, but his goal in this book is to take the reader on a journey of scientific exploration. The questions he asks and answers are:
1. What sort of bird bones, and other bones, have been found in caves Neanderthals were known to use?
2. Do we have proof that the Neanderthal people caught these birds? If so, what did they use them for?
3. From these answers, can we extrapolate anything about Neanderthal society and intelligence?
On the way, Mr. Finlayson also discusses bird migration (I had no idea it was so hard for raptors to cross open bodies of water), climate change, bird behavior, and more.
And it works. At least, it works for me as a reader. I am convinced Neanderthals in Gibraltar really did catch birds, and that they ate some and used others for their feathers. It's clear that catching birds would require planning and detailed knowledge. It's clear Neanderthals--though as mysterious as ever in some ways (we will never know why they valued eagle feathers)--really were smart, and fully human. To me, Mr. Finlayson proves his point. And he does so by combining natural history and archaeology in a novel and exciting way.
Thus, I'm upping this to four stars in spite of some awkwardness in the writing.
November 11, 2022
This is the most current book on this topic that I have read. In it, Finlayson combines his knowledge and love of ornithology and archeology. Much about birds and much about Neaderthals. He starts in the preface with saying "Those who have sought to define what modern human behavior is, always relegating the Neanderhals to an archaic world of primitiveness in the process, now have to revisit their untenable position. . . . In this journey of rediscovery it has become abundantly clear that, ironically, the Neanderthals had a significant impact on who we are." (p.xi)
This paragraph really made an impression on me. "We do not seem to realize how impoverished the word we live in has become. It's not just the endangered species or those on the brink of extinction, it's actually a lor worse. . . . If a Neanderthal, by some miracle, woke up and saw the world we live in he or she would struggle to understand why the skies are so empty and would weep with sorrow." (p.56)
Finlayson gives Neandertals credit for what they knew and were able to do. "Neanderthals were smart humans, with a clear knowledge of where resources were located and when to go for them." (p.115) They made jewelry with eagle talons and the feathers of various birds including turkeys, long before Homo sapiens came in to the area. It was 130,000 years ago. ". . . the makers had aimed at producing parallel, equidistant notches. It showed that the Neanderthals had aimed to produce a visually consistent pattern. . . . This was clearly symbolic behavior." (p.135) They also used ochre for pigment and painted and drilled shells. They twisted fibers for string or cordge. These practices were happening 50,000 years before Modern humans came to the area. (p. 161, 164, 179)
All in all a great book giving our extinct cousins credit for their accomplishments.
This paragraph really made an impression on me. "We do not seem to realize how impoverished the word we live in has become. It's not just the endangered species or those on the brink of extinction, it's actually a lor worse. . . . If a Neanderthal, by some miracle, woke up and saw the world we live in he or she would struggle to understand why the skies are so empty and would weep with sorrow." (p.56)
Finlayson gives Neandertals credit for what they knew and were able to do. "Neanderthals were smart humans, with a clear knowledge of where resources were located and when to go for them." (p.115) They made jewelry with eagle talons and the feathers of various birds including turkeys, long before Homo sapiens came in to the area. It was 130,000 years ago. ". . . the makers had aimed at producing parallel, equidistant notches. It showed that the Neanderthals had aimed to produce a visually consistent pattern. . . . This was clearly symbolic behavior." (p.135) They also used ochre for pigment and painted and drilled shells. They twisted fibers for string or cordge. These practices were happening 50,000 years before Modern humans came to the area. (p. 161, 164, 179)
All in all a great book giving our extinct cousins credit for their accomplishments.
August 24, 2021
Fantastic book. Information is presented in compelling way that leads the reader through the basic assumption that Neanderthals show none of the “higher human” cognitive functions and how they, unlike humans, cannot catch birds as they are a fast moving prey item, to the conclusion that this is wrong. Birds cannot be treated as a monolith, as species are highly differentiated and require different strategies to catch. Neanderthals do make complex tools, do ornament themselves (with eagle feathers), use ochre either to paint themselves or make paintings (incredibly likely imitated from vultures!) or both, make engravings in cave walls and had sophisticated social planning that included season specific hunting.
It seems that early humans may have learnt a thing or two from Neanderthals. Much previous research was more about locality than species (Human vs. Neanderthal). This means the difference is not necessarily between Human and Neanderthal behaviour, but between locality meaning resource and habitat availability between two locations. Over 160 species of bird associated with Neanderthal dwellings= 30% of all European Bird Species.
Great book, well written with a balance between argument, anecdote about his own research/wive’s/son’s, methodology of research, and explanation of findings. Short chapters make it incredibly readable and also means that each new piece of information has its own chapter.
Anglo Saxon: Feed the Eagles = Kill Your Enemies
It seems that early humans may have learnt a thing or two from Neanderthals. Much previous research was more about locality than species (Human vs. Neanderthal). This means the difference is not necessarily between Human and Neanderthal behaviour, but between locality meaning resource and habitat availability between two locations. Over 160 species of bird associated with Neanderthal dwellings= 30% of all European Bird Species.
Great book, well written with a balance between argument, anecdote about his own research/wive’s/son’s, methodology of research, and explanation of findings. Short chapters make it incredibly readable and also means that each new piece of information has its own chapter.
Anglo Saxon: Feed the Eagles = Kill Your Enemies
June 15, 2019
I bought this book after seeing an exhibition on Neanderthals at the Canadian Museum of History. The exhibition seemed more focused on telling me about attitudes about Neanderthals than it was on telling us directly about Neanderthals.
This book suffers from something of the same problem, in that it sets out to illustrate how attitudes about Neanderthals (that they were non-participants in the "cognitive revolution" and thereby replaced by Modern Humans - us) relies on a great deal of evidence about birds, the Neanderthals' environment, and so on, as seen through the eyes and activities of the author. This is a short book, which could have been even shorter if the author had skipped the details of his travels to Finland, Scotland, Eastern Ontario, and so on.
The material that is presented really is interesting, and it does seem to refute the idea that the Neanderthals weren't smart enough, so the book is worth reading.
I would have preferred a somewhat broader view of Neanderthals than this, though. A culture that spanned a large part of Eurasia and 100,000 plus years is something reading more about.
This book suffers from something of the same problem, in that it sets out to illustrate how attitudes about Neanderthals (that they were non-participants in the "cognitive revolution" and thereby replaced by Modern Humans - us) relies on a great deal of evidence about birds, the Neanderthals' environment, and so on, as seen through the eyes and activities of the author. This is a short book, which could have been even shorter if the author had skipped the details of his travels to Finland, Scotland, Eastern Ontario, and so on.
The material that is presented really is interesting, and it does seem to refute the idea that the Neanderthals weren't smart enough, so the book is worth reading.
I would have preferred a somewhat broader view of Neanderthals than this, though. A culture that spanned a large part of Eurasia and 100,000 plus years is something reading more about.
May 9, 2022
Despite the book's appearance and price point, The Smart Neanderthal is not aimed at a general audience, and I think the book's somewhat mixed reception is due in large part to a mismatch between expectations of the general audience and the level of detail with which the author presents his findings. Written from a personal perspective, the book combines two aspects of Finlayson's professional and personal life - ornithology and Neanderthal archaeology. The interactions between hominins and their environments have only recently begun to be investigated, and this book is an important contribution to those debates, showing the range of behaviours and possible associations evidenced at Neanderthal sites. In addition, The Smart Neanderthal's unusual angle and focus allows for some truly innovative interpretations of the archaeological record, which, in my opinion, is what the fields of palaeoanthropology and archaeology need to move forward. In short, the book is highly recommended for people with a good basic understanding of Neanderthal archaeology, but it might be a little too detail-oriented for a more general audience.
August 28, 2022
This is a very good discussion of Gibraltar Neanderthals -- how they were found, how they are being explored, what Gibraltar was like in those days, and what we have learned over the last decades. The family angle is precious -- the author's wife and adult son work in related fields, how's that for a CONNECTION?
But for me, this book is mainly a beautiful, poetic description of birds.
The point of the book is to say that old Neo was smart enough to hunt birds. As a paleo-thesis, well, ok, I guess paleo-people need to make a brouhaha about every claim and this is as good as any other. But author's description of visiting a gannet colony and waiting in a hide to spot a golden eagle are priceless. As a Neo book, it is a 3-star (Pat Shipman's, The Invaders is a four). But as a book about birds it is a solid 4.7
But for me, this book is mainly a beautiful, poetic description of birds.
The point of the book is to say that old Neo was smart enough to hunt birds. As a paleo-thesis, well, ok, I guess paleo-people need to make a brouhaha about every claim and this is as good as any other. But author's description of visiting a gannet colony and waiting in a hide to spot a golden eagle are priceless. As a Neo book, it is a 3-star (Pat Shipman's, The Invaders is a four). But as a book about birds it is a solid 4.7
January 29, 2021
excellent - thought provoking
I wish I had read this book before writing my own, Even so, although I am not an archaeologist nor an orbit holly ish, I also wrote a historical fiction novel featuring our ancient DNA cousins. The opinions and conclusions expressed are compatible to my own assertions, with very few exceptions. I did not credit Neanderthals with the ability or desire to fish or consume seals or dolphins until after encountering Early Modern Humans. I was thoroughly pleased with the notion that Neanderthals may have taught EMH a thing or two. I now tend to believe that possibility.
Looking forward to more from Author Finlayson
Jaime Reyes
Author: In the Beginning
I wish I had read this book before writing my own, Even so, although I am not an archaeologist nor an orbit holly ish, I also wrote a historical fiction novel featuring our ancient DNA cousins. The opinions and conclusions expressed are compatible to my own assertions, with very few exceptions. I did not credit Neanderthals with the ability or desire to fish or consume seals or dolphins until after encountering Early Modern Humans. I was thoroughly pleased with the notion that Neanderthals may have taught EMH a thing or two. I now tend to believe that possibility.
Looking forward to more from Author Finlayson
Jaime Reyes
Author: In the Beginning
May 9, 2025
What do you get when you take a family of avid birders and focus them at highest academic research levels on the question of Neanderthal cognitive capabilities? FAR MORE than you would ever imagine! They pretty much devastate the until-recently conclusions that Neanderthal were slow and brutish in ways that would preclude them from interacting and using “fast elusive creatures like birds” as food and for other purposes. And they raise hell with the common assumptions that only modern humans were capable of such things.
That may sound kind narrow and uninteresting, but the author is excellent and will hold your attention, even if Neanderthals aren’t really your thing.
That may sound kind narrow and uninteresting, but the author is excellent and will hold your attention, even if Neanderthals aren’t really your thing.
August 16, 2025
智人悖论：无解决的迷途。
进化 ：一种新颖性的搜索。
直布罗陀：此生必去的地方。
这些都是我读《The Smart Neanderthal》得到的启发。作者的写法轻松舒适，没有堆砌过多复杂的专业术语，却能顺畅地把读者引导到下一章节的主题。每一章都有明确的目标，也衔接得很自然。或许在翻开之前，你也可以先问自己一句：“这本书能带给我什么呢？”我想起一句话：“证据不见，并不代表证据不存在。”
The Sapien Paradox—unsolved mysteries. Evolution—a novel search with local competition. Gibraltar—a new place added to my bucket list.
Some of my takeaways from The Smart Neanderthal. Finlayson avoids excessive use of technical jargon while still offering abundant content. Each chapter is concise and progresses the exploration meaningfully. If you were to take a single piece of wisdom away from this book, it would be that "the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
进化 ：一种新颖性的搜索。
直布罗陀：此生必去的地方。
这些都是我读《The Smart Neanderthal》得到的启发。作者的写法轻松舒适，没有堆砌过多复杂的专业术语，却能顺畅地把读者引导到下一章节的主题。每一章都有明确的目标，也衔接得很自然。或许在翻开之前，你也可以先问自己一句：“这本书能带给我什么呢？”我想起一句话：“证据不见，并不代表证据不存在。”
The Sapien Paradox—unsolved mysteries. Evolution—a novel search with local competition. Gibraltar—a new place added to my bucket list.
Some of my takeaways from The Smart Neanderthal. Finlayson avoids excessive use of technical jargon while still offering abundant content. Each chapter is concise and progresses the exploration meaningfully. If you were to take a single piece of wisdom away from this book, it would be that "the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
Read
October 19, 2021Excellent new ways to think about the Neaderthals and humans in their occupation of Gibralter and its caves.
Finlayson is an ornithologist and his study of bird fossils and how they were treated by the humans is eye opening.
The weight of facts continues to grow on the side of Neanderthal sophistication in hunting, food processing, ornamentation etc.
Want to learn how to catch an eagle ? read this.
This is an interesting read and an enlightening one.
Finlayson is an ornithologist and his study of bird fossils and how they were treated by the humans is eye opening.
The weight of facts continues to grow on the side of Neanderthal sophistication in hunting, food processing, ornamentation etc.
Want to learn how to catch an eagle ? read this.
This is an interesting read and an enlightening one.
October 17, 2024
Eğer özellikle kuş bilimi ilginizi çekmiyorsa okuduğunuzda pek bir şey kazanmanız pek de mümkün değil. Antropoloji iddiası sebebiyle heyecan verici bir bilimsel anlatı olarak okumaya çalıştım ancak asıl derdi olan teoriyi bile hatırlayamıyorum neydi. Sadece onlarca bilmediğim kuş türüncen bahsediyordu. Bu da bağlamdan kopmanıza sebebiyet veriyor maalesef.
August 6, 2019
Okay so this book is not what I expected it to be. I was prepared for an exploration of neanderthal intelligence but all I got were lengthy descriptions of birds and their migratory patterns. Plus the writing just isn't all that great.
June 22, 2020
The Smart Neanderthal is a smart little book that gives Neanderthals their due while offering a wider critique of current thinking in archaeology. See my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist.com/2019...
October 18, 2020
Highly Informative
This book was a fairly readable account of opinions derived from recent research into Neanderthals. Overall extremely interesting. However, from my point of view there was a bit too much emphasis on birds rather than Neanderthals. A lot of the bird data could have been given in footnotes or appendices.
This book was a fairly readable account of opinions derived from recent research into Neanderthals. Overall extremely interesting. However, from my point of view there was a bit too much emphasis on birds rather than Neanderthals. A lot of the bird data could have been given in footnotes or appendices.
November 9, 2020
An interesting, personal tale of Neandertals. And birds. At first my thought was: why Neandertals and birds? But this is, as I said, a personal story by an ornithologist and an archaeologist, about two of his academic passions. A recommended read for archaeologists everywhere.
July 15, 2021
this is more about birds than neanderthals-if you are really interested in birds then this books is great...if you you want to learn about neanderthals it's not that great.It was not what I expected and left me feeling dissapointed.
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