Experimental Butchering of a Chimpanzee Carcass for Archaeological Purposes

Intensive butchering of hominin remains, whether for consumption or ritual purposes, consistently results in high frequencies of anthropogenic modifications such as cut marks, percussion pits, and notches—similar to those observed in two chronologically distant assemblages from the Sierra de Atapuerca: the late Early Pleistocene level TD6-2 at Gran Dolina and the Bronze Age level MIR4 in Mirador Cave. To test whether these modifications are a natural byproduct of butchering or indicative of special treatment, researchers experimentally butchered a chimpanzee carcass using simple flakes made from local quartzite and chert. The study found that about 40% of the remains exhibited modifications matching those seen in Homo antecessor fossils from TD6-2, with similar patterns in MIR4 except for skull treatment. This suggests that such modifications are common in intensive butchering processes across different contexts, challenging assumptions about ritualistic behavior in prehistoric societies.

Saladié, P., Cáceres, I., Huguet, R., Rodríguez-Hidalgo, A., Santander, B., Ollé, A., Gabucio, M. J., Martín, P., & Marín, J. (2015). Experimental Butchering of a Chimpanzee Carcass for Archaeological Purposes. Plos One, 10(3), e0121208. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0121208