Neandertals truly mastered the art of fire. In a sea cave protected from the harsh winds of Gibraltar, our ancient relatives constructed a hearth capable of producing tar from local plants, according to a recent study. Previous research has indicated that Neandertals utilized tar as an adhesive for crafting weapons and employed fires for warmth and cooking. However, the new discovery, published on November 12 in Quaternary Science Reviews, suggests that Neandertals engineered specialized fire structures to create tar.
"We did not anticipate finding this," remarks Juan Ochando Tomás, a botanist at the University of Murcia in Spain. After gathering evidence from multiple scientific fields, the researchers identified the structure as a hearth and confirmed its Neandertal origin. Ochando Tomás' team uncovered a small pit in a layer of sand, clay, and silt dating back approximately 65,000 years in a cave known to have been inhabited by Neandertals. A series of chemical and visual analyses were conducted on the pit's contents and surrounding sediments.
The findings suggest that the pit contained charcoal, pollen, and chemical compounds indicative of the burning of resinous plant material, along with yellow crystals that are likely tar. The tar was apparently derived from the resin of gum rockrose (Cistus ladanifer), a plant native to the nearby shrubland. Based on their findings, the researchers replicated the structure by filling a hole with rockroses, sealing it with sand and soil, and igniting a fire on top to steam the plants. After several attempts, the team successfully produced enough tar to craft two spears from flint and olive wood.
Archaeologist Andrew Sorensen, who was not involved in the study, describes the structure as an "oddity" for this period. Most Neandertal hearths were far simpler, and the use of fire by these ancient hominids appears to have been less common during this era. Initially skeptical of the study's conclusions, Sorensen was convinced by the analysis of the pit contents and the successful replication. The discovery suggests that Neandertals could have employed one of the more sophisticated and efficient methods for making tar, adding another potential adhesive to the limited list of those they used for toolmaking.
"My primary interest now is whether they can find residues on stone tools at the site that match the physical and chemical signatures of rockrose tar," says Sorensen of Leiden University in the Netherlands. "I believe this would significantly address any remaining doubts."
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