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Seven Ages of Man - 06 Dwarfs/The Neanderthals – Jane M Renfrew and the kindness of early man
Identifier
021730
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A description of the experience
Jane M Renfrew – Neanderthal symbolic behaviour – The kindness of early man
Caring for severely disabled members of the community must be one of the indicators of respect for the individual and for human life. It is clear that Neanderthals fed and looked after severely handicapped members of their communities who were too disabled to contribute to the food quest. For example, the Shanidar 1 individual found in a cave in the Zagros Mts in Iraq had suffered from a withered right arm and shoulder probably from birth, his right ankle showed extensive arthritic degeneration, and he had received a severe blow to the left side of his face which was not fatal but would certainly have blinded his left eye. Without the support of his group he could not have survived to the age of forty.
