The Neighbors

Humans face Neanderthals across the Danube

Danube River valley  =/- 40,000 ya

            Muka trudged through the brush and trees in the gray light of dawn.  He stopped sometimes, using his spear handle to gently part the grass or low branches on a bush.  Then he would move forward again, his large head swinging from side to side, sniffing the air.  Almost every morning, just as it was getting light, he would walk like this, a different route every day.

            Approaching a small meadow, he slowed, inhaling the air.  Going completely still behind a small shaking tree, he peered between the branches.  There were four deer, quietly munching on grass.  Muka knew he could hit the one closest to him. She was small, but it would be enough to eat for him and the clan. He raised his spear slowly, taking one final sniff-

            --and stopped short. Smoke, different smoke, was in the air.  His own home was high on the ridge behind him, and all the smoke was going upward in the still morning.  This smell was different.

            The deer forgotten, Muka stood quietly, inhaling the air again, and looking for the signs of a big fire. It couldn’t be too large, as none of the animals or birds were fleeing the area. The deer had even been calm. The smell was strongest in the direction away from the meadow, and toward the fast water.

            Even more slowly, he followed the odor to the edge of the water. Hiding behind a large tree he looked up and down the edge. Now he was hearing some odd noises, like several little ones calling and crying out. Suddenly he heard a male voice, but making noises he had never heard. 

            Crawling out on his knees, he cautiously searched for the source of the noises.  He found them. The sight made him fall flat on his stomach, and his mouth was open.

            On the other edge of the fast water was another meadow, ringed with trees. In it were strange wood objects that were tall, like trees in the cold time.  A large fire burned in the center, and two tall figures were holding a pig carcass over the flames.  Several small ones were indeed running around and making all sorts of noise. Muka was sure there would be no game around for  a long ways with all these strange loud sounds.

            A tall figure, who sounded male, came among the small ones.  He made two of them follow him to the edge of the fast water.  He gave each of them a small sharp spear. Then he walked into the fast water up to his knees. Muka was shocked. When one entered the fast water, one fell in and was gone. This tall one stayed, standing still, not falling in.

            The tall one held his spear for what seemed a long time, then plunged it into the fast water.  When he brought it out, there was a water animal flapping on the end.  The two small ones stood in the water and watched, trying to copy the tall one.  One of them plunged his spear in and toppled over, falling into the fast water.

            Muka was startled and cried out.  Not sure how, he found himself standing.  The other small turned quickly and seeing Muka, froze. The tall one went into the fast water and helped the fallen small one back onto the land.  Muka gasped aloud.  This time the tall one heard it too.  The three of them turned and looked straight at Muka.

            Tapoh laughed as his son, Tipunu, tried to get the hang of fishing.  Tipunu came out wet, but with a smile on his face.

            “A fish, big!”

            “Tipunu learns.” Tapoh patted him on the shoulder, proud. Then he heard a strange sound.

            Across the river, his large face in shock, was a heavy set stranger. His hair was long and matted.  He wore no clothes and  held a very simple spear. Tapoh stared, and the stranger stared back.  After a long moment, Tapoh raised his hand in greeting.

            Muka scurried away, terrified. What were these creatures,  tall, with power over fast water and water animals?  When the tall one had raised his hand, Muka was terrified that he would have power over him as well. Muka ran the entire distance  back to his cave, his clan, scared of something he could not understand.

Family

Inspired by a friend's post, and with a prehistoric nod to the royal baby due soon...

+/- 2,000,000 years ago, African river valley

It was wet. Dripping soaking wet. The grasses were soaked, making walking difficult, cold. The ground under the grasses was thick with mud. And still the waters fell from up. This was not common. They were headed for a dry rocky overhang in the hills across a stream.

Tey searched the group of just over a hand of fingers struggling through the wet day. Tey saw his aging mother, then his sister, Grah who was big with a coming baby. Walking slightly ahead, was his sister’s mate, Ahrr, who was older than Tey and the biggest of the group. Running and playing were two young ones who fed themselves, but still needed help often.Old Er, who had only three teeth left, came up behind. Tey stayed near his mother out of habit. Long since weaned, he still saw the look on his mothers face when he had romped around as he learned to walk and call her.

The water continued and soon they came to the muddy sides of the stream they had wanted to cross. It was much bigger than before, brown and running fast. Arhh crouched down in the mud. They all crouched down around him, sniffing the air for danger. It was almost impossible to hear anything coming, with the roaring and gurgling of the water.

Arhh stood up, looked around once more, and then headed across the water. One of the younger ones, being adventurous, escaped the hold of Grah and chased after Arhh. His cry of delight in the water soon turned to a scream of pain as the water knocked him down onto rocks. Helplessly, he was tossed down the rushing, angry stream. Arhh, hearing this, tried to catch the youngster. In doing so, he tripped and fell into the water. After a terrible short scream, he floated away limply; face down in the dirty torrent.

Grah called helplessly after him and would have gone to him, but Tey grabbed her and threw her on the ground. She was carrying a baby and they had just lost one. Still screaming, Tey held her down. His mother came over and started rubbing the big baby bump, crooning “Bah bah bah…bah bah bah”

As Grah quieted down, Tey stood up and looked around. He sniffed the air. The water from upwards was stopping. The stream continued to be strong and fierce. Tey grabbed a long branch that had floated down. He tested it against the flowing stream. It gave some support and was not too big to hold. He grabbed the other youngster who was quietly mourning the loss of his sibling, and put him on his hip. The youngster was heavy, but Tey was strong. Using the branch, he carefully felt his way across. The rocks were slippery and big. Finally getting across, he dropped the youngster.

Turning around he saw that his mother and Grah were doing the same thing. Old Er stood patiently, making no move to cross over. Tey started back. His mother and sister were going slow but seemed safe. Tey reached the muddy bank again and extended his hand to Er, who took it slowly. They made their way across, carefully. Grah and his mother were almost to the far bank. Tey was getting very tired now, and slipped a little. Er held steady.

Suddenly there was a painful cry. Grah was on the bank, holding mother. His mother was trying to climb up, but one foot was not coming out of the stream. When Grah pulled, she screamed. Tey and Er did their best to get there faster, both slipping several times on the large boulders they could not see. Tey came along side his mother. He still held the branch and Er. Looking at his mother’s eyes, seeing the pain, he wanted to help stop that pain.  He saw in his head that he was now the leader, with Arhh being gone. And Grah would need help with the baby. Mother could help. He let go of Er and grabbed his mother. Er grabbed once for the branch, then slipped. He too, went down the wild ride of the surging brook. Tey could not be sure, but he thought he heard Er cry out, “Bah bah bah…” as he disappeared from view.

Feeling with his foot, Tey could sense that his mother’s foot was caught between two rocks. He kicked at one of them, crying out as he broke his toes. His kick loosed the rock and as he and Grah pulled, his mother climbed onto the shore and collapsed on the wet rock. Grah stood, holding the hand of the young one. Tey limped painfully to mother and helped her up. Her foot was bleeding, but it did not look too bad. Together, the small band of one hand of fingers scrambled up to the rocky over hang.

The Makapansgat Face

I first discovered this a few days ago in the wonderful post by Abroad in the Yard:
http://www.abroadintheyard.com/26000-years-of-capturing-the-human-face/

 Wikipedia on Makapansgat Pebble
 


 My take on how this fist-sized cobble found its way at least 4 kilometers away from its natural source to a cave which has evidence of habitation by Australopithecus africanus.  The biggest challenge in writing something like this is the aspect of the language.  While they must have communicated somehow, it certainly wasn't in English, nor in complete sentences.  As I did with the Ancient Meat Eaters post, I'll write below my take of the concepts of this individual.

South Africa, +/- Two and Half Million Years Ago

She walked through the brush slowly.   In her left arm she carried her new young, suckling him occasionally.   Her mate was behind her, poking around the grasses for roots.  The sun was getting bright and hot.  She was thirsty, and was relieved to hear the stream running ahead of her.
With a soft call to her mate, she walked ahead to the stream. 
She knew this place, and had come here before.  The shore was rocky and hurt her feet unless she walked very slowly.  On one end the grasses grew thick and high.  She carefully picked her way here, sniffing the air as she did so.  It smelled safe. She listened carefully; there were no dangerous sounds.
 Once at the grasses she grabbed a handful with her free hand and bent them.  Then she did this again.  As they got lower she started stepping on them and mashing them further down. She stepped in this and made sure it was to her liking.  Bending down she took her sleeping infant and put him in the nest.  For a moment she stayed on all four limbs, looking down at him. 
Standing up and turning around, she sniffed the air again.  Cautiously, she walked to the water.  A little way above her, the stream fell over a few rocks. Here though, it flowed gently, making a small pool before continuing down to the tall place.  Stooping on all fours again, she looked at the water.  The water was strange, showing another who she didn't know.  This one always did what she did.  They smelled and tasted like water...not dangerous.  She dipped her hand into the water and brought it to her mouth eagerly, drinking and sucking her fingers.  She did this again, turning back to check on her infant as she drank.  Her mate joined her, going straight to the stream, ignoring the infant.
The last time she drank she startled, a short bark escaping her dripping mouth.  In the water was another one. This one seemed to grin at her, then scowl as the water flowed over it.  For some time she watched this one.  Her mate had alerted to her call, standing and sniffing the air about him. When he saw her staring at the water, he relaxed.  He sidled over to her and tried to see what had her attention so focused.  Cautiously, she poked a finger in the water.  The other one disappeared for a moment, then came back.  She poked again this time touching it.  It was hard, a rock.  Perhaps this one was stone.  She put her entire hand in the water and touched it.  Round, smooth except for the face, it fit in her hand comfortably.  She closed her fingers around the stone one and brought it out of the water.
This time a real scream escaped her.  This one was like blood.  In fear she stumbled to her two feet and fell backwards.  She scrambled to her infant who had woken at her scream and was now crying.
Her mate looked at this one, and touched it.  He picked it up, then with a grunt, tossed it back to the ground.  He stood up and went back to the grasses, eternally searching for food.
For some time she sat with her infant suckling him.  She sniffed the air for danger, but sensed nothing.  Yet something was different.
After a while her infant slept again.  Putting him gently into the nest, she crawled over to the stone one.  It wasn't as deep as blood now. She touched it then picked it up, looking at it.  Hard and still, it looked back at her.  It was somehow familiar, like one who had been gone a long time.
She sniffed the stone one, then tasted it.  The stone one didn't move.  She held it for a long time, then put it near her sleeping infant.
Taking a final drink from the stream, she stood up on her two feet and sniffed the air again.  She listened intently for animal sounds.  It was quiet.  She gathered her sleeping infant in her left arm and stood up to leave.
After a moment, she bent down and picked up the Stone One.  She had to find her mate, and take the Stone One to the other ones.  Many times on the way back to the safe place she looked at the Stone One.  And it always looked back at her.

What follows is my take on her thoughts, which I feel would be more like concepts.

Hot, thirsty. Safe. Baby safe. Thirsty. Thirsty place near. Mate!  Need all limbs, put baby safe.
Stop thirsty, see other one, stop thirsty.  Different one! Danger? Different one still...hard. Hold this one.  Blood! Blood! Danger! Baby baby! Baby safe. Baby safe.  No danger.  Different one...not blood. Different one...know? Stop thirst. Baby. Different one...take to safe place.

Early Burial

http://humanorigins.si.edu/resources/whats-hot/mystery-pit-bones-atapuerca-spain
Possible rendition of Homo Heidelbergensis

Northern Spain, =/-300,000 years ago

Ra was in front.  Ru was behind him.  They had seen the young mammoth that had gotten lost from the other mammoths.  This mammoth would be great food for the rest.  The cold time was coming too, and fur was needed to keep warm when the fires went low.
Ra and Ru had gone out together for many cold and warm times.  Most times they would get good food for the women and babies.  Today would be another good day.
The young mammoth trumpeted mournfully, lost and looking for its family.  Ra heard the sadness of it, but food was more important.  Soon, the mammoth would be  near the big rocks, and Ra and Ru could run down and throw their spears.  The rocks were not a full trap, as the water cliffs a day away were, but a confused animal could stay there enough time to be killed.
Ra waited.  He could hear Ru creeping quietly behind him.  Ra put out a hand, and Ru would know that they would not run now, but soon.
The young mammoth walked into the large rocks, Ra waved Ru to follow, and began to run.  As he ran he heard a thud and shortened scream behind him but did not pay attention.  The young mammoth was near and it was time to throw spears.  Ra threw his spear with a ferocious cry toward the mammoth.  It hit the mammoths flank, stayed for a moment, then fell off.  Ra yelled in frustration, and waited for Ru to throw.  But no other spear came.  The young mammoth bellowed in surprise and fury.  Stumbling around the rocks, it found a way out.  The wound on ints flank bled, but would not kill it.  In the far distance, Ra could hear the other mammoths trumpeting in reply.  Ra picked up his spear, and turned to find Ru.
Ru was lying face down, his head at an odd angle on a small rock.  His spear was on the ground in front of him.  Ra grunted, "Rrruu."
No response.  Ra kicked him in the ribs.  Ru didn't move.  Ra looked more closely.  Ru was not moving and his breath was gone.  Ra grunted and sat down next to Ru in confusion.  Ru would not help him on this hunt.
Ra stood up after the sun had moved.  He turned to walk back to their home of the cold time, a cave in the small mountain.  He walked a few steps, then turned and looked again at Ru.  He turned and walked again.  A bird's harsh cry made him turn and look back at Ru.  The bird was large, and was sitting on Ru, pecking at his head.  Not knowing why, Ra charged at the bird and waved him off.  He sat awhile more.  Ru would not move again, but Ra felt alone without him. With a grunt, not unlike the mournful cry of the lost mammoth, he stood up then bent and grabbed Ru's arms.  He dragged Ru back to the home of the cold time.
 Ra and Ru had always come here for the cold time.  Ra knew what to do when he returned.
Their was silence from everyone when they saw Ru being dragged by Ra.  Ra dragged him all the way through the cave to the back.  With another anguished grunt, he threw his brother down into the pit that went into the black.  No birds would peck at him here.

Ancient Meat Eaters...

Early Meat Eating 

the African savannahs, +/- 2 million years ago...

It was hot.  He wiped the sweat out of his eyes.  It was time for food and he was going to get it.  Noises had come earlier from the far tree, and he was making his way there now.  Slowly and carefully, so as not to surprise any predators into hunting him.  A snarl reached him from the far tree...good, that meant there was still food from it.
He held his sharp stone in his hand.  He took a step and then...
...a gazelle jumped in front of him.  He froze, knowing that such activity meant the gazelle was being chased.  She disappeared into the brush.  A moment later a large cat ran by, chasing the gazelle.  He waited...then followed the lion.  Close by the sounds of the fatal encounter came to a squealing halt.  Very slowly, he approached, making sure the wind was in his face.  The fresh blood and meat reached his nostrils and he inhaled slowly.  It was too much.
Bending down and picking up a fist-sized rock, he then charged into the cat's feast, screaming at the top of his lungs.
As the snarling cat turned to face him, he lobbed the rock into its face.  With a bitter scream the cat retreated a few feet, snarling as it did so.
He grabbed the warm gazelle, and the cat began to follow.  Screaming back at the cat he saw one of the legs was almost off, thanks to the cats teeth.  Quickly he ripped it off and tossed it at the approaching cat.
He lifted the remains of the gazelle onto his shoulders and ran for his life back to the others.  Blood running into his eyes was so much better than sweat, he thought.

I write rather quickly, correcting my errors as I go.  The result isn't always fantastic.  My big problem with writing this, is that of course a Homo Erectus wouldn't think, talk, or otherwise communicate in English, or even in the fully formed and reasoned sentences we do.  Hence, what follows is solely my interpretation of the same story, totally in the character's linguistic/communicative/thinking perspective...


Hot. Eyes sting. Hungry, hungry.  Far tree food noise...food noise.  Step slow, slow.
FREEZE!  Close food noise...slow slow step.  Danger...hungry hungry. DANGER! Throw! Danger...food, hungry.  Danger..hungry...danger food.  Step fast fast!  Hungry Hungry!
Food.. eyes sting.

Neanderthal-Homo Sapians Love Child?

http://news.discovery.com/human/evolution/neanderthal

Fascinating subject matter.  What follows is just an idea of what may have happened.... 
...in a forested valley, in what is now Italy...=/-40,000 years ago...

Kuti was unhappy.  He wanted to mate, but the clan had rejected him.  Every time he approached a female in his clan they yelled at him and threw rocks to discourage him.  The men didn't like him either.  On the last two hunts his spear had not only missed, it had hit Dirok, the son of the Leader. Dirok had lived, but now walked slowly and breathed loudly.  The Leader had hit Kuti's head so hard he now couldn't hear on that side.  He ate last, even after the old ones and small girls.

Today Kuti was wandering through the forest, in hopes of finding some food.  He had found a few berries, but not enough for his growling belly and certainly not enough to take back to the clan.
His sense of frustration grew.  On the ground was a rock and he picked it up and threw it with a an anguished grunt.  To his surprise he heard a scream.  Scrambling through the brush he found one of the Others.  His rock had hit her on the leg, leaving it cut and bruised.

But Kuti didn't concern himself with that.  This Other was a female and not going anywhere.  She was ugly, as the Others were.  Big forehead, short bushy hair, stocky. The females in Kuti's clan were slender and had long flowing hair which he liked.  Now though, he felt the urge to mate.  Roughly he pushed the Other female back and mated her.  At first she screamed, but then quieted down.  After he was done he looked at her leg.  He motioned for her to stay and went to find some moss.  Gently he ground the moss in his hand and rubbed where his stone had hit her.

"Kuti" he said, pointing to himself. 
"Kuuii" she repeated back.  "Taa" she hit herself in the chest gently.

Kuti met with Taa twice more, and then she disappeared.

Nine moons later Taa woke up with pain in her belly.  Grunting and screaming, she gave birth to a child.  This child was different and her clan rejected both her and the child.   They survived in the forest for awhile, then Taa died of starvation.  The child cried and yelled, but Taa didn't move and she cried for a long time.  She finally crawled to the rock where they had slept, and fell asleep, never waking up again.

Welcome to Ancient Agendas

Hello! Welcome to Ancient Agendas.  First of all, I want to say here that I am absolutely NOT a scientist.  Of any sort.  As much as I like Anthropology, Archeology, Paleontology,  and Linguistics, I just cannot get into a logical mindset about any of them.  When I see a headline about the possibility of Neanderthal art, or charred bones that proved ancient hominids were cooking long before agriculture, my very intelligent response is "Wow, keeewwwwlll..."

And so, lacking any formal education in any of the above fields of study, and never having worked on a dig, I am anyway and anyhow going to blog.  As in the description, which says in full, "..A non-scientific blog about our ancestors, and what they did, or might have done", my blogging intention here is to take that "Wow, keeewwwwlll..." and turn it into something that is hopefully entertaining, thought-provoking, original, and even plausible.

Comments here or to auraburrows@gmail.com are welcome.  And may I say here, again reminding my readers this is non-scientific, if I occasionally put a bow and arrow into the arms of a Neanderthal, or have homo habilis cooking in ceramic pots, well, the error is unintentional...except for the 2 previously mentioned, those are intentional.  If one is completely  new to the world of  prehistory, then realize I've just given cell-phones to the ancient Greeks.

Enjoy.