The first time I saw a picture of what scientists imagine Neanderthals looked like, I was freaked out. I know this one. And I mean, I know someone who looks like his identical twin, down to skin and hair color.
I was so freaked out that I sent the picture to various acquaintances without saying anything, they all asked when I had seen C. Nobody thought it was someone else.
Is this just a coincidence, and he is just not gifted in the looks department? Or is it possible that out of the genes that we inherited from Neanderthals he got a straight flush for the ones that control appearance?
FWIW, this person is has some Spanish and African ancestry in him.
A science magazine (Discover, I think - long time ago) published a reconstruction of a Neanderthal on their cover. Dead ringer for one of my great-uncles in my opinion, and confirmed by my grandmother (his sister)
That’s when I started to subscribe to the idea that they interbred with modern humans, long before it was confirmed genetically.
Keep in mind that it goes both ways: These reconstructions are made by modern humans, and they’re going to base their work at least in part on live models. And the only live models they have available are all H. sapiens sapiens.
Heh. I’ve thought about this many times but it’s not politically correct to acknowledge certain genetic similarities. Nuff said.
Apparently in the late 1800’s U.S. it was possible to guess where a former slave came from by their features and head shape. Today, there are some Mexicans that look like our modern interpretation of Aztec whereas some have a more Spanish-Latin appearance for for obvious genetic reasons. Most people of European ancestry are more homogenous.
No, you’re just seeing a Neanderthal from straight dead on, which is probably the worst angle to discern the differences. Side views show the differences more clearly.
Having said that, there is a wide range of human skull and face shapes, and some might look more “Neanderthal” than others. That’s only natural.
Further… I always thought it was rather humorous that the main proponent of the Multi-Regional Hypothesis (Europeans are direct descendants of Neanderthals) was rather Neanderthal looking himself.
Not necessarily. The genetics of Neanderthals suggest that at least some had pale skin and red hair (although resulting from different genetic variants than those present in modern Europeans).
