A fascinating study of the proto-humans who lost the evolutionary battle with Cro-Magnan Man reveals interesting insights into the nature of the human race and an intriguing look at the way Neanderthals lived and the reasons why they vanished 50,000 years ago.

Vorwort
Tens of thousands of years ago, a struggle took place between our ancestors - Cro-Magnons - and a rival human species, the Neanderthals. What happened, and why? Arsuaga provides some plausible answers.

Autorentext
Juan Luis Arsuaga is Paleoanthropologist and Professor of Human Paleontology in Madrid, Visiting Professor at the University College of London and co-director of excavations at Sierra de Atapuerca (a World Heritage Site). Dr. Arsuaga's work there and the discovery of Homo antecessor has transformed the history of human evolution and won him the Premio Príncipe de Asturias 1997. A member of the American National Academy of Sciences, he is a regular contributor to Nature, Science, the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, and editor of the Journal of Human Evolution.

Klappentext

The Neanderthals provide a surprising mirror for modern-day humanity. They belonged to our evolutionary group and lived like the Cro-Magnons, our ancestors, did -- worshipping, socializing, and hunting. The struggle between Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons lasted thousands of years. The Cro-Magnons were not biologically fit for extreme cold weather, but their ingenuity allowed them to settle down, band together, and survive. In this tale of life, death, and the awakening of human awareness, Juan Luis Arsuaga, Spain's most celebrated paleoanthropologist, depicts the dramatic struggle between two clashing species, of which only one survives.

Zusammenfassung
Neanderthals are at the center of this compelling narrative by Europe's leading anthropologist, not because they were our ancestors but because they were not. Members of a parallel humanity that evolved in Europe for hundreds of thousands of years, they were in direct competition with Cro-Magnons -- modern humans. The way Neanderthals lived and the reasons why they disappeared 50,000 years ago offer a surprising mirror in which we can examine and learn more about ourselves. Illustrated, concise and readable, this is a fascinating exploration of human origins. "Lively, personal, refreshing, and instructive, this book should be read by anyone interested in their own origins and our extinct relatives." -- Ian Tattersall, author of The Fossil Trail, The Last Neanderthal, and Becoming Human