Neanderthal man appeared in Italy 250.000 years ago: much earlier than hitherto believed. This was revealed by a study conducted by INGV, in collaboration with the Sapienza University of Rome and Madison-Wisconsis, published in Quaternary Sience Reviews
Thanks to the application of a geological investigation methodology based on the study of sea level variations during the glacial periods and their influence on the deposition processes of river sediments in the Roman area, a revision of the age of the site has been achieved of the Aniene valley of Saccopastore in Rome, where two skulls of Homo neanderthalensis were found in 1929 and 1935. An age of about 125.000 years was attributed to these remains which made them the most ancient evidence of the presence of the Neanderthal in Italy, at least until the recent dating, at about 150.000 years, of the remains found in Puglia, in a cave in Altamura (Bari ). To find out, a team of geologists, geochronologists, paleontologists and palethnologists coordinated by the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), in collaboration with the University of Rome La Sapienza and the University of Madison-Wisconsis.
The study was published in Quaternary Sience Reviews (http://authors.elsevier.com/a/1RymY-4PRehfl).
“The results of the new work”, says Fabrizio Marra, INGV researcher and lead author of the publication, “have shown that the remains of Saccopastore are more than 100.000 years older than hitherto believed, bringing the age of the Neanderthal to Italy 250.000 years ago, therefore contemporary to that found in central Europe where the first remains attributed to this human species were found".
The sedimentary deposits in which the skulls were found had been interpreted by the scientific community as a fluvial terrace originating during the last interglacial stage of 125.000 years ago, called the "Tyrrhenian", preceding the last glaciation.
“In particular, the skulls were found in a river gravel quarry on the banks of the Aniene, then buried to construct the buildings that today line the Tangenziale Est at Via Asmara, just before the Ponte delle Valli. Today, following the anthropic modifications of the area, it is no longer possible to observe the stratigraphy highlighted then. Even if the cuts for the construction of the ring road have made it possible to highlight the land surrounding the Saccopastore area and the relationship between sedimentation and sea level oscillation during the glacial periods in the Rome area”, continues Marra.
The study, carried out with the aid of radiometric dating on volcanic levels interspersed with the sediments, allowed us to demonstrate that the "Tyrrhenian" terrace in the Roman area is found at higher altitudes than those of the Saccopastore deposits and that the deposits of the cycle previous sedimentary layer, corresponding to the penultimate interglacial stage of over 200.000 years ago, are found at altitudes similar to those of the Saccopastore site. In particular, the gravel deposits containing the skulls of Neanderthal man correspond to the first phase of deposition of the sedimentary cycle, which took place at the end of the penultimate glaciation around 250.000 years ago.
"From the critical review of the fossil finds and the prehistoric lithic industries, found at the time of the discovery together with the human remains", adds the INGV researcher, "it has also been highlighted that none of these finds has characteristics such as to imply an age of 125.000 years, while they are entirely compatible and extremely similar to those found in the Roman area within sediments attributed and dated 250.000 years".
Scholars had always emphasized the "archaic" character of the Saccopastore skulls, but no one had so far thought of questioning their dating, although this was done with the criteria and according to the geological knowledge of the beginning of the last century.
“The development of studies on the geological features of the Roman area, which has received great impetus in the last fifteen years from research conducted by INGV through interdisciplinary collaborations with Italian and international scholars, has made it possible to acquire new methods of investigation and elements which have significantly increased scientific knowledge in this area. The new age of Neanderthal man in Italy is a direct consequence of this”, concludes Marra.
Links to images: http://bit.ly/1l5KXUe
Rome, 3 November 2015
The board
Who: National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), University of Rome La Sapienza, University of Madison-Wisconsis
What: study A new age within MIS 7 for the Homo Neanderthalensis of Saccopastore in the glacio-eustatically forced
sedimentary successions of the Aniene River Valley, Rome - published in Quaternary Sience Reviews (http://authors.elsevier.com/a/1RymY-4PRehfl)
For information Fabrizio Marra email