This reminds me that in a way after reading the article , they still somewhat survive, just that we now call them Bigfoot, sasquatch, yeti, Yowie, Yeren...

I've said this for decades, that the "Forest people' are either an offshoot of Gigantopithicus or some branch of humans that went a different direction. Those creatures clearly show intelligence, masters at hiding, even using primitive tools , though stone knapping and use of ropes, weavings hasn't been seen/found.

Plus countless numerous legends from the bronze age on have reported large hairy men in the forests/mountains, the numerous tribes in North America tell the tales, even have done cave paintings, wall paintings of them. Theres over 60 different names for Bigfoot alone in North America. Asia and the Russian steppes have the same stories, same tales.

But unlike the Neanderthal, people have been videotaping them, snapping photos, taking hair samples, foot casts. Its guestimated that theres between 12,000-18,000 at minimum in North America alone. Sadly its going to take a body to actually 'prove' Bigfoot, or better yet, a live capture, quick study, then release.

Makes you wonder.

DNA suggests that they do indeed live. In and through us.
Evidence shows they interbreed with Homo sapiens. And no I don't have any Republican jokes on this one. (OK I do but not relevant )

This, my friends, is a hairy situation. (* ahem *) I've thought for years that if we found a mummified Neanderthal in a desiccated desert cave, it would be furry. The arguments in the article are supportable, just not provable. The common image of the gentle Neanderthal suggested in Jean M. Auel's novels may never have existed.

I've always wondered if Modern Humans didn't directly cause the extinction of the Neanderthals. Perhaps the predation went both ways.

Gives a whole new meaning to 'meet and eat'. Unless you're a member of the Donner party.

There is genetic evidence that a number of Neanderthal populations were likely assimilated into the modern human gene pool. Skeletal evidence found in Israel was of a young woman who was half-Neanderthal and a number of populations in Eastern Europe have traces of Neanderthal genes in their DNA.

I recall hearing that the Ozbournes did one of these genetic tests things to look into their ancestry and that it came back that Ozzy had them Caveman genes, something Sharron his wife replied "came as no surprise"

Very interestying article that makes some good points. The image, especially compared to the usual "friendly" Neanderthal reconstruction, really makes you think twice.

I got a good chuckle when the article touched upon how initial historical looks at a people tends to put them in a more pacifistic light. I remembered when it was still taught that the Mayans and Inca were a bunch of peaceful farmers.

Remember the film The 13th Warrior? The main enemy in the film were a supposed race of "goblin-like" warriors that slaughtered farmers and waged war on the Norsemen of the area; they later turned out to be some sort of primitive people (implying perhaps Neanderthals or a pre Indu-European tribe) who were pushed to extreme measures because of competition.

Now consider that movie was supposedly based on an actual account written in the Dark Ages by an actual Persian who had been exiled to the Norse kingdom of Rus (now Russia)...

I read the Crichton novel the movie was loosely based on (Eaters of the Dead), and in the book it was bluntly stated in an appendix by Crichton that the 'Wendol' were surviving Neanderthals.

Not that he was the first to use nasty Neanderthals as villains. I own a collection of Many Wade Wellman's Hok the Mighty stories, which are all about a heroic Cro-Magnon hunter and his tribe fighting cannibal Neanderthals.

Innnnteresting!

Verrrrry interestink!

Hm, interdasting. However In the context of fantasy, as the article mentions orcs, I'd say based on what we do know and what we have proven I'd say the neanderthals would be closer to the typical Dwarf of Tolkien fantasy.

Then again... We don't really know what the Neanderthals really looked like. We can only make educated guesses based on what we've found thus far.

I will say I disagree with the notion that Modern Human and Neanderthals peaceful coexisted, and I also disagree with the idea that it was all out war all the time every day. Population was low enough for there not to be a real drain on resources, which is the cause of most conflicts be it man or other animals, however man like many other animals are territorial. So I see territory disputes being the main cause of conflict rather than predation. Then there is this whole thing about having Neanderthal and Denisovan mixed in our own DNA.. but ye..

Good read all the same

Huh, that is intriguing.

It's interesting as a thought experiment. But H. sapiens has proven throughout it's history to be so violently xenophobic that it can't tolerate any competitors. First we wiped out all the other hominids, then we wiped out the large predators and megafauna, then we turned on each other in an orgy of inter-tribal violence that continues to this day. Unfortunately intolerance to "the other" (be it another species of human or someone from another tribe) is so deeply ingrained in our DNA that centuries of civilization hasn't eliminated it. And the presence of Neanderthal DNA in the modern human genome is due to another quirk of H. sapiens-- the species is so over-sexed they'll screw anything. If humans will have sex with a horse, blow-up doll or a corpse, a Neanderthal was probably a hot item back in the day!

At one point I had the idea that H. Neanderthalensis could also have been called H. Magi, i.e. "magic people." As such, they would have had an advanced civilization that was unable to leave notable artifacts but lots of old stories. (And apparently the Neanderthal went extinct about 28,000 years ago.)

I love this very different reconstruction of Neanderthals, it reminds me of old vs new Dinosaurs.
It also resembles Bigfoot. Hmmm...

I came to a similar conclusion some time ago. Naming one of the smaller hominids discovered "Hobbits" was apt, I think, though, they might have been our "Dwarves" (small, lives underground in caves) or "Elves" (lives underground in caves, known for abducting children who are never seen again, just like wolves prey upon the young animals), Neanderthals would make excellent "Orcs". There may be other subspecies we've yet to find, and it wouldn't surprise me if there was some tall, thin "Elves" or literal "Giants" or "Ogres."

Playing Breath of the Wild, it struck me, once this was us. Fighting smaller, dumber, but stronger humanoids, and some larger, stronger brutes, armed with mostly clubs, terrible shots with rocks if they bother throwing them, with nothing but your wits and some projectile weapons, is an ancient memory, of a time when we shared the planet with Hobbits and Neanderthals. Once, this was us.