Neanderthal Elephant Hunting Evidence Confirmed After 80 Years Through Bone Analysis

A 125,000-year-old straight-tusked elephant skeleton discovered in 1948 at Lehringen, Germany, with an eight-foot wooden spear lodged between its ribs, now provides definitive evidence of Neanderthal big game hunting. Archaeologist Ivo Verheijen from the University of Tübingen led a 2025 reanalysis of the finds stored at the Schöningen Research Museum, identifying cut marks on ribs and vertebrae that indicate systematic butchering. The elephant, a male in its prime at about 30 years old, would have yielded approximately 7,700 pounds of meat, organs, and fat, sufficient to sustain many people. Previous skepticism arose from amateur archaeologist Alexander Rosenbrock's poorly documented excavation, which lacked photographs or sketches and saw some bones stolen. The new study, published March 24 in Scientific Reports, confirms Neanderthals as skilled hunters who strategically targeted large herbivores. Additional evidence from the site includes processed brown bear bones for marrow and beaver remains for meat and fur. This finding aligns with 2023 research from Neumark-Nord 1 in Germany, where cut marks on straight-tusked elephant remains also suggested Neanderthal consumption. Archaeologist Britt Starkovich noted Neanderthals' advanced knowledge of hunting targets and butchery processes, comparable to anatomically modern humans 125,000 years ago.