Studies Link 300,000-Year-Old Schöningen Spears to Neanderthals, Detail Large-Mammal Hunting
Updated
Updated · Livescience.com · Jul 19
Studies Link 300,000-Year-Old Schöningen Spears to Neanderthals, Detail Large-Mammal Hunting
1 articles · Updated · Livescience.com · Jul 19
Summary
2024 and 2025 studies say the Schöningen wooden weapons—dated roughly 200,000 to 300,000 years old—were used to hunt large mammals and may have been made by Neanderthals rather than Homo heidelbergensis.
About 20 to 25 weapons have been excavated at Schöningen since 1992, including spears averaging just over 2 meters and shorter 65-centimeter throwing sticks, indicating both thrusting and projectile use.
Butchered horse remains found with the weapons, along with sharpening, fire-hardening and blackening, support the view that their makers had advanced material knowledge and varied hunting tactics.
The finds rank among the oldest known weapons, though experts still call the more than 400,000-year-old Clacton spear the safest answer for the oldest confirmed weapon.