Virtual excavation and analysis of the early Neanderthal cranium from Altamura (Italy)
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Published:2023-03-24
Issue:1
Volume:6
Page:
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ISSN:2399-3642
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Container-title:Communications Biology
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language:en
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Short-container-title:Commun Biol
Author:
Profico Antonio, Buzi CostantinoORCID, Di Vincenzo Fabio, Boggioni Marco, Borsato AndreaORCID, Boschian Giovanni, Marchi DamianoORCID, Micheli Mario, Cecchi Jacopo Moggi, Samadelli Marco, Tafuri Mary Anne, Arsuaga Juan Luis, Manzi GiorgioORCID
Abstract
AbstractComplete Neanderthal skeletons are almost unique findings. A very well-preserved specimen of this kind was discovered in 1993 in the deepest recesses of a karstic system near the town of Altamura in Southern Italy. We present here a detailed description of the cranium, after we virtually extracted it from the surrounding stalagmites and stalactites. The morphology of the Altamura cranium fits within the Neanderthal variability, though it retains features occurring in more archaic European samples. Some of these features were never observed inHomo neanderthalensis, i.e. in fossil specimens dated between 300 and 40 ka. Considering the U-Th age we previously obtained (>130 ka), the morphology of Altamura suggests that the archaic traits it retains may have been originated by geographic isolation of the early Neanderthal populations from Southern Italy.
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology,Medicine (miscellaneous)
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