Precise Dating of Lapedo Child Sheds Light on Neanderthal-Human Interactions

A breakthrough dating method confirms the age of a Neanderthal-human hybrid child while revealing insights into prehistoric burial practices and population dynamics.

The Lapedo Child, a skeleton with Neanderthal and modern human traits, has been precisely dated to between 27,800 and 28,500 years ago using a new hydroxyproline radiocarbon dating method.
The child’s remains, discovered in Portugal in 1998, provided critical evidence of extensive interbreeding between Neanderthals and early modern humans, reshaping our understanding of human ancestry.
The burial site, abandoned for over 2,000 years after the child’s interment, may have been deemed taboo by the community, potentially due to the death event itself.
New findings clarify that red deer bones in the grave were likely used to position the body, while a rabbit skeleton, stained with red ochre, appears to have been a symbolic burial offering.
The advanced dating technique used on the Lapedo Child could refine timelines of early human and Neanderthal interactions across Europe, offering more precise insights into ancient migrations and cultural practices.