An ancient bit of yarn suggests Neanderthals were super crafty
Twisting up fibers is more complex than it seems. (S. Deryck/)When you think about how Neanderthals spent their days, the first thing that comes to mind is probably pretty far off from, say, knitting a sweater or weaving a basket. But, it turns out that these ancient hominids might have known a lot more about yarn and cords than we give them credit for.A new study in Scientific Reports presents the earliest direct evidence of fiber technology, AKA using plants in the wild to create yarn. And those textile traces from 41,000 to 52,000 years ago didn’t come from our own species: Researchers found the evidence in parts of Europe that were Neanderthal stomping grounds during that time.This is a big deal for a handful of reasons. It’s not every day that archaeologists come across perishable artifacts like hair or plant products, which degrade much more quickly than pottery, rocks,...