A total of 15 small marine fossils were found in the Prado Vargas cave in Burgos, and according to researchers from the University of Burgos and the University of Malaga in Spain, most of them would not have been of much practical value.
This means that these fossilized marine inhabitants were most likely collectibles, deliberately collected by ancient people for some purpose other than basic utility. This suggests abstract thinking, the ability to think beyond current and immediate experience - a key human trait.
"Fossils, with one exception, show no evidence of having been used as tools. So their presence in the cave can be attributed to collecting activities," the researchers wrote in their published paper.
"These activities could be motivated by multiple material and non-material causes, suggesting that collecting activities and associated abstract thinking were present in Neanderthals before the appearance of modern humans."
The more we discover about our distant cousins, the smarter they seem to have been.
This is not the first time that Neanderthals have been found to collect non-tool objects, but this find is larger than previous ones. Dated to about 39,800-54,600 years ago, the fossils appear to have been part of an established community camp.
Determining which of the "material and immaterial causes" applies here is difficult, however. Researchers have raised the possibility that they had decorative value, were used in exchange, gave the group a cultural identity, or perhaps were collected as gifts.
They may even have been children's toys, as there is evidence of children living in the cave. In short, the reasons for collecting are potentially as varied as the reasons we continue to collect objects today.
"They may have been found intentionally or accidentally, but their transportation to the cave must have been intentional, suggesting an impulse to collect these fossils," the researchers write. "In either case, they would represent special significance."
Whatever these collectibles were used for, it's significant that there's no evidence of early human activity in the area at the same time; it seems to be a behavior that Neanderthals developed all on their own.
Our penchant for collecting goes back a very long time - perhaps half a million years - but there is much debate about when it actually started and from which species. The Prado Vargas Fossil Collection offers a fascinating new look at the chronology of collecting and the consideration of concepts beyond the immediate here and now.
"These fossils can be understood as evidence of artistic interest, fascination, or curiosity about the forms of nature. They have no utilitarian purpose and their interpretation is therefore controversial," the researchers write. | BGNES
