Scientists unveil what 75,000 year-old Neanderthal woman 'Shanidar Z' looked like

UK archaeologists have unveiled the face of a Neanderthal woman who lived 75,000 years ago. The reconstructed facecan potentially shift long-standing perceptions of the Neanderthal species, usually considered brutish and primitive beings.

The research, conducted by a team from Cambridge and Liverpool John Moores universities, aimed to more accurately date burials found in Shanidar Cave, located in the Zagros Mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan. It also endeavoured to contribute to the broader discussion about why Neanderthals disappeared about 40,000 years ago.

How was her face reconstructed?

The woman whoseremains were discovered in 2018 in Shanidar Cave was named Shanidar Z.

Shanidar Z, as per estimates, was 40-something at the time of her death and was found laid to rest in a sleeping position.

The discovery of Shanidar Z was particularly notable for the condition of her skull, which, was found flattened, compressed to a thickness of just two centimetres, possibly flattened by a rockfall relatively soon after her death, reports AFP.

In spite of that, it is considered one of the best-preserved Neanderthal skulls found this century.

The final reconstruction of Shanidar Z’s face was achieved through 3D printing and detailed paleoartistry by Dutch twin artists Adrie and Alfons Kennis. Ithighlights less pronounced differences between Neanderthals and modern humans than previously thought.

Emma Pomeroy, the Cambridge palaeo-anthropologist who uncovered Shanidar Z, highlighted the interbreeding between Neanderthals and humans "to the extent that almost everyone alive today still has Neanderthal DNA."

This wasthe fifth body identified in a cluster buried for several hundred years in the cave.

The positioning of the bodies in the cluster in the same spot, in the same position and facing in the same direction implied "tradition" and the "passing of knowledge betweengenerations,"suggests Professor Chris Hunt of John Moores.

"It looks much more like purposeful behaviour that you wouldn’t associate with the textbook stories about Neanderthals, which is that their lives were nasty, brutish, and short," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)