Archaeologists find Neanderthal tools hidden in old bones
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Archaeologists in Romania scanned over 10,000 animal bone fragments from the Vîrghiș Gorge and identified 83 items that Neanderthals crafted into tools.
The team, led by Monica Mărgărit of Valahia University in Târgoviște, re-examined bones from the Abrí 122/1200 site after noticing a lack of bone tools despite decades of excavation and plentiful stone artifacts. They suspected previous analysis methods might have overlooked evidence of tool use.
Researchers used microscopes to find distinctive patterns of scratches, polishing, and impact marks on the bone fragments, differentiating between natural damage and human modification. They also created their own bone tools to compare wear patterns. The team discovered the Neanderthals used the bones as retouchers to shape stone tools, and some functioned as wedges or hammers. Most of the bone tools showed minimal modification, suggesting Neanderthals selected bones for immediate, practical tasks rather than investing time in creating standardized artifacts.
This pragmatic approach likely explains why these tools remained undiscovered for so long, as previous archaeologists primarily focused on larger, well-preserved bones. The discovery adds to evidence of Neanderthal bone tool technology across Europe and Asia, from France and Spain to Siberia.
