Researchers analyzing nearly 600 wooden remains and imprints from Abric Romaní in Spain revealed that Neanderthals used wood for weapons, tools, and structures between 62,000 and 40,000 years ago, demonstrating a woodworking tradition that rarely survives in the archaeological record.
Stone tools have long dominated our understanding of prehistoric life simply because rocks outlast flesh and foliage. But a comprehensive analysis published in Science Advances shifts that perspective, revealing a repertoire of wooden technology that accompanied Neanderthals across thousands of years of daily existence at a rock shelter near Barcelona. The study is led by Palmira Saladié of the Catalan Institute of Human Palaeoecology and Social Evolution and Universitat Rovira i Virgili.
Abric Romaní Excavation Yields 597 Wooden Specimens
Over decades of digging through 19 sandy layers, researchers recovered 597 wood specimens and natural imprints from 16 archaeological layers spanning roughly 62,000 to 40,000 years ago, while samples from lower, unexcavated deposits indicate human presence as early as 110,000 years ago.
The organic material itself rotted away long ago. Instead, calcium carbonate from the surrounding travertine limestone built up around the decaying wood, creating natural molds that preserved objects with cellular-level precision.
Spears, Trays, and a Mysterious Wooden Club
Level R produced two wooden spears designed for close-range thrusting, including one measuring about 8 feet long alongside another preserving the imprint of a nearly 6.5-foot-long pointed object. Another layer yielded four bark trays or containers, and wooden elements interpreted as parts of structures or windbreak screens.
“Although relatively small, this collection of artifacts is notable for the varied morphology and functionality of the items that comprise it.”
The researchers, via Courthouse News
Rethinking the Palaeolithic Material World
The research team features Palmira Saladié, M. Gema Chacón, Àngel Solé, Eia Allué, Juan Marín-Hernando, Bruno Gómez de Soler, and Josep Vallverdú of the Catalan Institute of Human Palaeoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES-CERCA).
“I think the main message is quite simple,” Josep Vallverdú, a study co-author and an archaeologist at the Catalan Institute of Human Palaeoecology and Social Evolution (IPHES-CERCA), told Gizmodo. “Wood was probably a much more important part of Neanderthal life than we normally see in the archaeological record.”
Josep Vallverdú, study co-author and archaeologist at IPHES-CERCA, via Gizmodo
“Stone survives. Wood usually doesn’t. So there is an enormous part of their material world that we almost never get to see.”
M. Gema Chacón, study co-author at IPHES-CERCA, via Gizmodo
While some external experts such as archaeologist Dirk Leder caution that distinguishing natural branches from deliberately modified items remains challenging without clear traces of cutting or bark removal, ongoing work at the long-researched site continues to illuminate how inhabitants utilized wood for tools, windbreak structures, and fuel.