Hole in Neanderthal shoulder bone linked to ancient wooden spear

A Neanderthal who died 75,000 years ago may have been struck through the chest by a sharpened wooden spear, archaeologists say. They report that a 15mm hole found in a shoulder blade in a cave in Iraqi Kurdistan could be the earliest evidence of lethal violence involving such a weapon.

From the angle of the wound and other evidence, the researchers believe the spear entered the individual's chest and passed through the body, likely damaging a lung and major blood vessels, before exiting through the left shoulder blade to leave a near-perfect hole. This research contributes to emerging evidence suggesting that Neanderthal societies experienced more violence than previously thought.

Neanderthals were a separate species of humans that went extinct around 40,000 years ago. They lived across a large expanse of Europe and western and central Asia, sometimes overlapping with our species, Homo sapiens.

The wounded Neanderthal's remains were found in a cave in Iraqi Kurdistan. Along with the left shoulder blade, the individual's right hand, three ribs, and some teeth were also discovered. According to Dr. Emma Pomeroy, the study's lead author from Cambridge's Department of Archaeology, the hole in the shoulder blade may represent the earliest evidence of "lethal interpersonal violence" from a wooden spear.