30 January 2021 | New Scientist | 39“ Denisovans
inhabited one
of the harshest
environments
on Earth”
but tooth pendants and bone points found
there are between about 43,000 and 49,000
years old. This suggests that H. sapiens made
the most advanced artefacts.
The same problem bedevils claims of
Denisovan art. In 2019, a team described
two pieces of bone that had been carefully
scratched with a sharp point and coloured
with red ochre. They were found at Lingjing
in northern China and are between 105,000
and 125,000 years old. That is early enough
to be Denisovan, but also late enough to be
made by H. sapiens. A beautiful Indonesian
cave painting, showing human-like people
hunting pigs and buffalo, is around 44,000
years old – an even more ambiguous date.
If some of these objects turn out not to
have been made by Denisovans, it doesn’t
mean they weren’t clever, says Athreya. “Not
all societies have to have Western markers
of civilisation to be smart.” In fact, symbolic
behaviours like making art may not become
established in small, isolated populations,
which, genetic evidence suggests, is how
Denisovans lived. “Symbolic thoughts,
symbols like personal ornaments and art and
body decoration, would be important when
you’re trying to identify ‘us’ versus ‘them’,”
says Bailey. If most Denisovans rarely met
other groups, art may not have been a priority.
Nevertheless, the Denisovans’ apparent
technological sophistication, hunting
prowess and ability to survive in extreme
environments are impressive. And they
were clearly able to get along with other
hominins when they did meet. The working
hypothesis should be that they were
intellectually on a par with Neanderthals,
says Viola. Historically, Neanderthals were
portrayed as stupid, but that stereotype
has been overhauled. “Cognitively, they
weren’t that different from us,” says Viola.
“If Neanderthals weren’t that different,
Denisovans shouldn’t be either.” ❚Michael Marshall is a science writer
based in Devon, UK, and author of
The Genesis QuestExcavations (top)
and a 160,000-
year-old jawbone
(above) show that
Denisovans lived
in Tibet (below)DO
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