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The town of Schöningen in Lower Saxony in Germany is world-renowned in archaeology: the most impressive arsenal of hunting weapons preserved from the Palaeolithic period was uncovered here. Together with further experts, archaeologists from the Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie (LEIZA) and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have now, for the first time, presented age data on finds from the so-called Spear Horizon. After an earlier correction of the age of the famous hunting spears from 400,000 to 300,000 years, the new data, published in Science Advances, show that the age of the Spear Horizon must be revised again by around 100,000 years to an age of 200,000 years.
JOINT PRESS RELEASE OF THE LEIBNIZ-ZENTRUM FÜR ARCHÄOLOGIE (LEIZA) AND JOHANNES GUTENBERG UNIVERSITY MAINZ
Unique depositional conditions at Schöningen favored the preservation of wooden spears and other wooden implements, along with the remains of hunted prey, which primarily consisted of horses. At the time of the discovery of the first spears in the mid-1990s, their age was estimated to be about 400,000 years. This was later revised to about 300,000 years. However, these relative estimates were based on the ages of overlying and underlying sediment layers, not on data obtained directly from the Spear Horizon itself. Due to these uncertainties, differing age estimates have been debated for many years.
Refined analytical method leads to new age estimation
Central to the new dating approach is an analytical method known as amino acid racemization, refined in recent years by a research group led by Professor Kirsty Penkman at the University of York in England as part of her EQuaTe project. This biochemical approach takes advantage of the fact that amino acids can occur in two forms that are mirror images of one another: a left-handed L-form and a right-handed D-form, based on the arrangement of their molecular bonds. In living organisms, L-form amino acids predominate. After death, L-form amino acids are slowly racemized, or converted, into D-forms, until both forms are present in equal proportions. If the original protein is retained within a closed system, the ratio of L- and D-amino acids therefore enables age estimation.
At Schöningen, the degree of racemization was determined from the opercula of small freshwater snails of the genus Bithynia. Opercula are calcite structures that act as a lid to prevent drying out when the snail is inside. These calcites can preserve amino acids for millennia. The samples examined in the new study came from sediment blocks recovered during the original large-scale excavations at Schöningen. Additional racemization samples of horse teeth and shells of small crustaceans processed as part of the study in combination support a young age for the site.
Contribution to a better understanding of human evolution
The younger age estimate in no way diminishes the significance of the Schöningen finds but adds to the site's importance as a marker of human behavioral evolution. With its revised age, Schöningen now dates to the Middle Palaeolithic period and the time of early Neanderthals. Apart from the spears, clear evidence for hunting also stands out compared to other sites from earlier periods. Throughout all seasons of the year, small groups of horses were repeatedly killed along the shoreline of a former lake in Schöningen – a total of more than 50 horses, as studies by the MONREPOS Archaeological Research Centre and Museum for Human Behavioral Evolution, a LEIZA facility near Neuwied, Germany, have demonstrated in a previous project.
The specialized hunting of primarily one animal species has been documented across Europe for around 200,000 to 250,000 years. With the new dating, Schöningen joins a series of findings from other sites that illustrate a marked acceleration of hunting capabilities. According to the authors of the recent paper, the specialized hunting of smaller prey groups of mainly one animal species was more promising than other encounter hunting strategies. These findings also suggest well-coordinated hunting parties in which the participating individuals performed coordinated, clearly defined tasks to ensure a successful hunt. The degree or "quality" of human cooperation apparently reached a new, higher level about 200,000 years ago.
Dr. Olaf Jöris
MONREPOS Archaeological Research Centre and Museum for Human Behavioral Evolution
Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie (LEIZA)
56567 Neuwied, GERMANY
phone: +49 2631 9772-14
e-mail: olaf.joeris@leiza.de
J. M. Hutson et al., Revised age for Schöningen hunting spears indicates intensification of Neanderthal cooperative behavior around 200,000 years ago, Science Advances, 9 May 2025,
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adv0752
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adv0752
For the first time, archaeologists from LEIZA and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), togethe ...
Aritza Villaluenga
Aritza Villaluenga
The sediment of the so called “Spear Horizon” contains small freshwater snails of the genus Bithynia ...
Ellie Nelson
Ellie Nelson
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