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Palaeolithic Pareidolia Demonstrates Neandertal Abstraction With Simple Act Of Creativity18/11/2025 
We know that humans and Neandertals were not so different. Not only were we around 99.5% genetically identical; the way we perceived the world was also incredibly similar. This has been ever more apparent with a recent discovery in Spain at a famous Neandertal site. The San Lazaro rock shelter has preserved some wonderful specimens from this ancient culture, and the recent discovery of a purposeful fingerprint in the centre of a stone is one of the best.
We know that it’s not unusual to see faces in nature. Our brains are designed in such a way that alerts us when we perceive what could be a predator or another person. It’s not just faces, either, which is known as pareidolia. Our central perception system or Reticular Activating System can quickly interpret patterns and shapes that allow us to detect many things that might or might not be there. Animal shapes, faces, our own name being called in a crowd, danger or urgency are important psychological factors that these shortcuts have helped us to navigate. The stone with a fingerprint in the middle resembles a human face. It could be a Neandertal or a Homo Sapiens, the abstraction allows us to see what we believe. The evidence demonstrates that a creature very similar to us, around 45,000 years ago, deliberately made an impression on stone that activates the facial recognition systems. Consciously manipulating psychology in this way is the beginning of symbolic art, which in turn became language and writing. With a bit of imagination, the face could even be wearing a mammoth head as a shamanic device. The eye shaped mark to the left of the dot could be the human eye. We can see the clear creative element, the Neandertal who made the mark saw that the stone looked a bit like a face. At some point, they decided to embellish the natural piece with an ocre dot, using one of their fingers. It’s a delicate and purposefully round mark. It’s not a smudge or a semi-conscious impression, you can see it was done with great care and thought. By seeing the face and deciding to place the dot, the Neandertal displayed creative thought. These little acts of inventiveness are what allow us to move forward as a species. Across the planet we share around 20% of the Neandertal genome, according to recent studies. We each have a few percent. Our societies were clearly not so different that breeding families could form and remain together to ensure survival of the children. Whether through choice or circumstance, these unions left enduring traces in our DNA. What can we learn from this one ancient being who saw the face before they made it? Playfulness and imagination are key ingredients in the formula for progress. If we can’t play with information, ideas, and tools, we can’t learn about the extent of their reach. Once we find new uses for things, new ideas, and new ways to express information, we can begin building culture that lasts beyond the grave. What connects us to an ancient Neandertal human can connect future humans to ourselves in generations to come. Our little changes, originality, and courageous imagination can leave traces that ripple onward for ever. If Stone-Age archaeology interests you, check out this online short course. Explore the mysteries of Star Carr. Via The Independent 
Via LiveScience: The 1,000-year-old ring contains either a piece of garnet or red glass at its center. (Image credit: National Museum Scotland)
The painted people, Picti, were first mentioned in Latin during the 3rd Century AD. Their origin seems to stem from the Iron Age Caledonii tribes and their counterparts, known for making it impossible for Rome to conquer them. The Middle Ages saw Picts take the lead in the North of the British Isles, with wonderfully patterned architecture and fashion pieces leaving an immortal mark on the landscape. Pictland is a specific area of the Scottish countryside that holds the largest concentration of the styled creativity. It is, in fact, in the methods of creativity and the techniques employed that we could make our best educated guesses as to the origin of many various pieces of history. I wonder if this would be still true for today’s works of art and design?
Although the Pictish people had a vibrant and diverse spoken language, rooted in the ancient Gael languages, they did not leave any written word for us to explore. This perhaps suggests they did not have writing at all, or perhaps despite their ability to make complex designs in stone, they wrote on something much more transient. It could have been a superstitious belief that prevented words from being made permanent. There is also the fact that Pict is a generic term invented by Latin speaking people to describe a culture they knew nothing about. The pictures they refer to were probably dyes applied to the skin or tattoos like the Māori people of New Zealand. Trends and cultural synchronicities can run through several cultures, like football today could mean we are the ballkicking people. Sounds good, but it doesn’t say much about the variety of players in the world. Even though we have various writings from the time about the so-called Picts, they are generally written in second-hand accounts or in passing tense. No real or long-lived emissary work was done to understand the cultures, perhaps because of the warring tribes on both sides. What we have to do is go to Pictland itself and explore the things the ancient culture left behind. In the most long-lived artifacts, the ones constructed with the most attention and care, the test of time reveals at least some of what they valued the most. The good news is that the work is still ongoing, with new finds being made all the time. Every fresh discovery writes another page in the annuls we never got. As reported in Live Science Magazine, a volunteer recently unearthed a splendid piece of Pict jewellery. The metal ring is at least 1000 years old and contains a red solitaire. It’s thought to either be garnet or red glass, testing the fragile piece might be harmful. Maybe a safe way of finding out can be applied. Retired Engineer and Alum of Aberdeen University John Ralph decided to join the dig when the opportunity arose, and he was the lucky archaeologist who found the kite-shaped antique piece. The ruined fort from Pict times was almost obliterated during the 1800s when developments built over the site. Now with a clear conscience, the modern-day Scots are revisiting their heritage and safeguarding the fantastic treasures that still hide beneath the fertile and haunted ground. |
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AuthorAlternative Fruit by Rowan B. Colver Archives
August 2026
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