Overview
- The study published Oct. 15, 2026 in Scientific Reports describes a 15 mm circular perforation in the left scapula of a Neanderthal called Shanidar A and interprets it as perimortem penetrating trauma consistent with a sharpened wooden spear.
- Authors used micro-CT scans, 3D modelling and displaced bone fragments to reconstruct a downward, front-to-back trajectory and beveling they say fits wooden thrusting or throwing spears rather than stone‑tipped weapons.
- The team stresses the cause of the wound is not settled and says it could reflect either interpersonal violence or a hunting accident, a view echoed by outside experts who call the wooden‑spear and homicide readings tentative and in need of more testing.
- Dental evidence shows a split lower incisor with heavy calculus, indicating Shanidar A survived a severe facial injury for at least a year and likely received prolonged help from others with eating and care.
- The remains come from a tight cluster of burials at Shanidar Cave that the authors read as repeated intentional deposition, and the excavation team plans further experimental work to quantify the force and weapon morphology behind the wound.