By: Kylie, Josue, Jonathan, and Mario

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Neanderthals
By Kylie, Josue, Jonathan, and Mario
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Introduction
Have you ever wondered what our early ancestors
were like? Well, Neanderthals lived more than
70,000 years ago. So get ready! Now were
starting our adventure, putting the keys into our
automobiles, and driving off to the past!
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Dates and Places of Existence
The Neanderthal people lived during the ice age.
They existed about 70,000 years ago. Some
scientists believe that Neanderthal people
migrated from Africa, Europe, and Asia. The
common Neanderthal man only lived up to be forty
years old. The entire Neanderthal population
ended about 30,000 years ago.
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Physical Apearance
The Neanderthals stored extra body fat so they
could survive in very cold temperatures. As a
result, they were not lean. However,
Neanderthals were tall and had big muscles. They
also had a bump over their eyes. This was because
of how their skull was formed, which was with a
prominent brow bone. They also had a unibrow.
Neanderthal skulls were smaller than ours, but
Neanderthals had better vision than us other
humans. They had no cavities and very strong
bones!
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Shelters
Neanderthals stretched animal hides over mammoth
bones and tusks. Then they weighted the skins
down with more bones to protect their huts from
the high winds. Neanderthals also lived in caves
or built animal skinned huts and in the shelters
from overhanging rocks and cliffs. Neanderthals
used mammoth skulls and tusks for archways. They
also used animal hides and big animal bones.
Their huts were temporary and usually on
mountains.
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Food

Woman gathered nuts, berries, and other things
needed, while the men hunted reindeer, bison,
mammoths, deer, and bears. Scientists believed
that the ice age caused a shortage of food, so
Neanderthals also ate bugs. Both men and woman
had an important job because men hunted for food
and woman gathered food.
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Daily Life

The Neanderthals were marvelous hunters. They
even caught game. They also cared for their
children. They built fires to stay warm. Their
daily life mostly depended on trying to survive
and finding food and water.
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Tools

The Neanderthal men had a variety of tools. They
made axes from a stone called flint. They made
knives and scrapers. Later in the old Stone age,
people made tools from bones, deer antlers, and
metal. Metal was important because it didnt
break a easy as rock. The Neanderthals only had
stone tools, though, and these tools made the
Neanderthal life much easier. Tools helped with
hunting, building shelters, gathering food, and
making clothing.
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Fire
Neanderthals made fire out of shiny, golden brown
rocks called pyrite, which would spark when hit
together and could then be used to light twigs on
fire. They used fire for keeping warm, scaring
animals, and cooking food. They also used fire to
make light. Neanderthals made torches out of wood
and small pieces of animal bones. They used
torches to scare mammoths down cliffs, as a
hunting technique.
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Religion and Ceremonies
A funeral feast would be presented with the dead
man resting by the meadow a short distance away.
The dead man was laid out in a sleeping position.
At the feast, deer meat would be eaten in his
honor, while his body is still nearby. People
would gather in a circle around a fire. They
would skin the deer and the meat would be
roasted. They would have this ceremony so that
the dead man could start his new life in the
afterlife. Then Neanderthals would have burial
ceremonies, where the deceased would be buried
with tools and food and the body would be buried
under flowers. Although it was very primitive,
the Neanderthals were the first group to have a
religion, which pondered the question of life and
death.
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Language
Language is one of the most important things that
makes us human today. Neanderthal young learned
necessary skills from their parents, with the
boys learning to hunt from their fathers and the
girls learning to gather food and care for young
from their mothers. The Neanderthals, however,
did not have any spoken language. Instead they
communicated through sound effects and gestures.
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Clothing

• Neanderthals were the first species to make
  clothing, rather than just draping animal and
  wrapping animal hides for warmth. Bone needles
  helped them sew animal skins into clothing,
  blankets, and tents to keep them warm and dry.
  The animal skins needed to be cured and dried
  before holes were punched into the hides and they
  were tied or stitched together using animal
  sinew. Clothing was very special to the
  Neanderthals.

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Painting and Carving
Pots, bones, and tools are some things that
archaeologists have found that are part of the
art supplies of Neanderthals. Mostly stone tools
were found and used for their art. Art was an
expression of families. Early artists painted
scenes showing rocks, animals, and rivers.
Neanderthals believed that people became these
things when they died. Artists painted on rocks,
cave walls and cave ceilings. Sculptures were
also made from bone and clay and crushed color
rocks to make paints. They used chalk to make
white paint, charcoal to make black paint, and
iron oxide to make red paint. They also used
animal hair for a paintbrush, which we also do
today.
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Hunting and Gathering
The Neanderthals sometimes had to travel miles
chasing their food to hunt. They made bows and
arrows and also spears. These tools were made of
the bones of mammoths, deer, and wild bulls.
They put designs on the blades. The main designs
are from nature.
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Conclusion
Now that you know about Neanderthals, our early
ancestors, think about what it would be like to
be them. How would you like to have a bigger
head or a muscular body? Always know that in
some ways, the Neanderthals are like we still are
today.
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Neanderthal Quiz Questions

• What materials were used by the Neanderthals to
  make paint?
• Why did Neanderthals kill mammoths?
• What form did the religion of the Neanderthals
  take and why do you think that they formed their
  religious beliefs?