Day: July 18, 2022

The Natural History Museum in London houses one of the most important collections of human fossils in the Palaeolithic record. This collection includes Middle Pleistocene hominids such as Swascombe or Boxgrove, as well as Neanderthals (eg Tabun C1) and Late Pleistocene Homo sapiens (eg Es Skhul).

These individuals are essential to be able to investigate the culture-of-death both in Europe and in the Middle East. For this reason, a large part of the pieces in this paleoanthropological collection are part of our DEATHREVOL research project.

Tabun C1 represents a partial skeleton of a female Neanderthal. The skeletal remains of her were articulated, towards the left side of her with a slight flexion of the legs. This skeleton has traditionally been interpreted as a burial because it is quite complete and in anatomical position. The chronology of this skeleton, although it has been much debated, is estimated at around 122 ka.