The Cro-Magnon People

I remember when I was a young girl, one of my older sisters did a project for the school science fair. She was comparing 3 types of early humans; Neanderthals, Cro-Magnons and modern humans. I was fascinated by the display she made, and that was probably what started my attraction to all things pre-historic. But people don’t speak of Cro-Magnons anymore, and I finally found out why.

Human evolution is filled with terms and names related to past humans that can get quite confusing. Cro-Magnons are an example of that. They lived in Europe around the time of the last Ice Age, from 40,000 to 10,000 years ago. They were initially named after the Cro-Magnon rock shelter in France where the first of their skeletons were discovered in the 1860s. Now, however, scientists refer to them as Early Modern Humans or Anatomically Modern Humans.

The bones of the first Cro-Magnon specimens were discovered in 1868 during road construction in the Dordogne Valley in southwestern France. The remains were of 4 adults and an infant. The rock shelter where they were found showed clear signs of occupation, including ornaments such as pendants and necklaces made from shells and animal teeth. This led researchers to believe the occupants had been deliberately buried in the shelter as a single grave.

Scientists compared the skeletons to those of Neanderthals that had been discovered in England and later in France. They came to the conclusion that the Cro-Magnons were distinct enough to warrant their own designation. However, advances in anthropology and genetics eventually established that these people were fully modern humans, indistinguishable from people today. Therefore, the term ‘Cro-Magnon’ was phased out by the end of the 20^th century, as they were recognized as part of a larger population of early modern humans who migrated across Europe, Asia, and Africa during the Upper Palaeolithic era.

Another reason why the name was changed was because ‘Cro-Magnon’ did not refer to a specific taxonomy; it was the name of a cave and was considered inappropriate for palaeontology.

The individuals found at Cro-Magnon were anatomically similar to people living today. They had high foreheads, prominent chins and slight brow ridges. They were generally taller than Neanderthals, sometimes by as much as a foot. And their skeletons indicate they lived tough, physically demanding lives.

The skull of Cro-Magnon 1, an adult man found at the cave, shows signs of a fungal infection, while some of the others had fused vertebrae in their necks, which would have likely come from traumatic injuries. And one of the females found at the site appears to have lived with a fractured skull.

Despite living through extremely difficult conditions, the ‘Cro-Magnon’ people lived in complex social structures. Archaeologists have recovered sophisticated tools made from bone, stone, and antlers. They also had artistic creations such as cave paintings, jewelry, decorated artifacts, and carvings. They are recognized for creating some of the earliest depictions of animals and human figures, as well as abstract patterns.

So, it appears that, rather than being very distant relatives like the Neanderthals, the ‘Cro-Magnons’ are simply a part of the human family. I can’t blame my sister for having erroneous information in her project, considering she put it together in the late 1950s with the best information she could find in the small town where we lived. And I’m still fascinated with pre-history.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/who-were-the-cro-magnon-people/ar-AA1tKDNb?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=2f57b4f4f07b49a58069b2bf77c09911&ei=69