Specimens

La Ferrassie 1

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Site:
La Ferrassie
Lat/Long:
44.95, 0.93
Classifications:
Homo, Homo neanderthalensis
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La Ferrassie 1, often referred to as LF1, is a male Neanderthal skeleton estimated to be 70–50,000 years old. It was discovered at the La Ferrassie site in France by Louis Capitan and Denis Peyrony in 1909. The skull is the most complete Neanderthal skull ever found. With a cranial capacity of 1641 cm3, it is the second largest hominid skull ever discovered, after Amud 1, another Neanderthal.

The skull displays many of the "classic" examples of Neanderthal anatomy, including a low, sloping forehead and large nasal openings. His leg and foot bones make it clear that Neanderthals walked upright like modern humans. The teeth are well preserved and the incisors are heavily worn down, suggesting they were used to hold objects.

La Ferrassie 1 is most known for being the most complete Neanderthal skull; however, additional bones were also discovered. This is especially important due to the lack of bones that show a large number of Neanderthal characteristics. Along with the skull; the scapulae, pelvis, hand, and foot remains were identified. The hand and foot remains that were found showed minor damage. The hands and fingers of La Ferrassie 1 have been linked to rare conditions. The teeth of La Ferrassie 1 have also been the subject matter to many human evolution theories. Nonetheless, the La Ferrassie 1 remains have proved to be beneficial in studying evolution over time. La Ferrassie 1, at the time of his death, was approximated to be 45 years old. This age would coincide with other Neanderthals who were considered elderly at this age. Some researchers have also used new technology to suggest a possible dating correction of La Ferrassie 1.