The First to Bury Dead - Research Paper

Introduction

It is believed that during burial there are accompanying rituals or associated behaviors which are symbolic in nature. These rituals may include altering of words, a certain behavior or even placement of objects. Modern practices such as the existence of relationships, languages and other practices have been discovered to have existent earlier through the study of fossils.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

According to KER THAN "Neanderthal burials confirmed as ancient ritual", the discovery of 50,000 years old skeleton which was discovered in a cave found in France, was believed to have been intentionally been buried. The skeleton which was unearthed was believed to be of Neanderthal and was buried intentionally according to the re-analysis conducted 13 years later for the site. The author goes ahead to there was the existence of peaceful burials among humans dating back to 50000 years. The careful burial shows that there existed great compassion between the Neanderthal which made the burial to be done to avoid scavengers. From the text given by the author, the Neanderthal is believed to have existed in early days portraying early species of humans whose genetic traces though few were passed down to non-African descendants. According to the author, most ancient relatives conducted burials in some time.

According to the archeologists report by two brothers who uncovered the existence of the skeleton believed to have been buried, they concluded that the burial was intentional, though this finding was not readily accepted until a research conducted later to re-examine the cave by French researchers later proofs that the depression in which the skeleton was first found had been modified to show some burial had been conducted.

THAN.K. (16 December 2013) Neanderthal burials confirmed an ancient ritual.

Anthropologists have always served a great role in unearthing possible burials by discovering symbolic objects associated with burial rather than only bones. A pink ax found by a Spanish researcher at Atapu in a pit together with 27 people remains dated from around 350,000 years at homo heildelbergensis suggests a possible purposeful burial.

It is believed by most researchers that the stone axe had symbolic significance associated with burial. Being the only artifact found within that pit and it resembled the one discovered in Spain with exception of its colorations. It is suggested that having some colors on it, those responsible had other intentions, maybe seeking for it later and also it had some significant meanings. According to a report given by the founder of the axe, the axe symbolized a ritual which is common to the current human race. He continued to say that it was from a funeral right and was possibly the first burial ceremony. This great discovery by Eudald Carbonell serves a great deal in discovering the first people to conduct the burial ceremony.

Though most people tend to disagree with the discovery by suggesting that instead: the fossils may have wound up and collected into the pitch together with the axe due to the flow of water and the mud this belief tends to negate the hypothesis that it was a burial ritual resulting to parity in findings and people believes. Though the study by the anthropologists suggest that these species gave rise to Neanderthals.

Anatomically modern Homo sapiens together with Neanderthals are believed by most anthropologists to have originated possibly from homo heindelbergensis. There has been a common belief that the Neanderthals may have been the first to conduct such burial ceremonies in a systematic and in a ritual way over 100,000 years ago. This is because over 30 Neanderthal sites have exhibited such possibilities.

Pollen analysis reports from anthropologists suggest that flowers were put in Neanderthal graves alongside animal bones and stone tools. Flowers had been significantly to represent grieve or signs of compassionate emotions while the goods placed in such grave may have been used to indicate the need for the dead to use them in the believed afterlife. Some offering in form of animal bones was also included.

These burial rituals by Neanderthals using symbolic significances has always been a key role in the study though paleoanthropologists always disagree with the findings by concluding that maybe it was a form of disposal of the bodies hence bringing out a great difference in body disposal and burial ceremonies.

According to the research given by the French researcher in 1999, the pit had been modified to the grave. Unlike the bison bones and reindeer found at the cave, Neanderthal remains showed no signs of weathering and had few cracks. The remains were also protected from animal disturbance. As the statement given by the researcher goes "the two sets of bones had different histories. The animal bones had been exposed to open air for quite long periods of time as the skeleton remained buried and protected from any form of disturbance for all that time."

Two children and adult bones were also discovered by the scientists thought it was not presented clearly whether they had been buried or just being disposed of. From the research report by Paul Pettitt, Durham university archeologist suggests that through modification of simple pits resulted in funerary. This suggestion can be supported through such conducted excavation from 30 different sites believed to be of Neanderthals (Phillips, 2000).

By burying their dead the Neanderthals shows some resemblance with recent findings that they showed care and their capabilities of symbolic thought and the possibility of an existence of deep rich culture. The findings show that they could have likely decorated themselves in pigments.

The findings show that they wore jewelry made of feathers and colored shells. They also took good care of their elderly and the sick. From the evidence found in La Chapelle site. The skeletons discovered by the Bouyssonnie brothers were believed to have belonged to a Neanderthal who had to miss with most of his teeth missing and showed problems in hips possibly suggesting that his movement was difficult and could only have moved through the help of other Neanderthals (Hovers, 1992).

In order to come up with a clear finding on whether the bodies had been buried or washed away as the suggested, a study to find out was conducted in an adjacent cave near where the skeletons were first found. Microscopic studies were conducted by a team of scientists in order to compare the sediments clinging on the bones discovered previously. The confirmation showed it was for Neanderthal.

At least 30 teams conducting the study have been on this big question on the burial. The French researchers agree to the discovery that the Neanderthals were the first to conduct burial ceremonies. They believed that the Neanderthals buried their dead. Though some American researchers such as Dibble always question this great discovery by suggesting that there must be a possibility of existed of other sites, for example, the Roc de Marshal site, a Neanderthal child was found in 1961 believed to have been buried.

Through micromorphology conducted by the American researchers to put the site under microscopic view in order to gather clues of the existence on how bones and the artifacts had been deposited in such pits.

The conclusion was that the skeletons had been deliberately buried all this time (science, 2009). From the paper published in 2011, an argument was set to on microscopic and macroscopic sediments study found around the burial site in which the child was found and found that it was a natural depression and the child might have slid from above into the pit. Since the child's face was facing downwards, this could have been a possible accident.

According to the American researcher suggestion, Maureilli says some common practices such as body covering with earth, lower vertebral may be susceptible to wearing out as the soft body tissues disintegrate for burials which were not deliberate. According to the latest publications of Pettit, disposal of bodies to natural depressions could have led the rise of digging such pits by the Neanderthals in order to create artificial pits (Moran, 2017).

Conclusion

Though the discovery of the Neanderthal burial site remains a big question if it was the first, the argument grows quite large every day as more ideas are put in place and more discoveries are meant. This great discovery remains the mother of burials unless a big discovery is meant (Pettitt, 2010).

References

Belfer-Cohen, A., & Hovers, E. (1992). In the eye of the beholder: Mousterian and Natufian burials in the Levant. Current Anthropology, 33(4), 463-471.

Pettitt, P. (2010). The Palaeolithic origins of human burial. Routledge.

Moran, M. H. (2017). Missing Bodies and Secret Funerals: The Production of" Safe and Dignified Burials" in the Liberian Ebola Crisis. Anthropological Quarterly, 90(2), 399-421.

Phillips, D. (2000). Neanderthals are still human!. Institute for Creation Research.