Deliberate body disposal by hominins in the Dinaledi Chamber, Cradle of Humankind, South Africa (original) (raw)

Abstract

Homo naledi is a new species recently named from material recovered from the Dinaledi Chamber, inside the Rising Star cave (Berger et al., 2015). Comprising 1550 remains attributed to a minimum number of 15 individuals of all age groups, it was postulated by Dirks et al. (2015) that the unique assemblage could be the result of deliberate disposal of the dead by this small-brained and previously unknown species of hominin. Alternative taphonomic hypotheses, such as accumulation via a natural death trap or by predators, transport by water, occupation of the cave by the hominins, or catastrophic event, were rejected on the basis that (i) the fossil assemblage is composed exclusively of hominin remains (with the exception of a few micromammal and bird bones), (ii) it was recovered in a deep, dark, underground cave chamber never accessible to non-hominins and (iii) no evidence of vertebrate damage (e.g., no carnivore or rodent gnawing) was identified. Furthermore, based on the results of their taphonomic analysis, Dirks et al. (2015: 1) proposed that “hominin individuals reached the chamber complete, with disarticulation occurring during/after deposition”. This has far-reaching implications for understanding the conditions surrounding the emergence of mortuary behaviours in our lineage. Mortuary practices, that is, specific responses by the living members of a group towards their dead, are not exclusive to humans. This is supported by the various reactions towards deceased individuals observed among non-hominin primates, and especially chimpanzees (e.g., Teleki, 1973; Anderson et al., 2010; Biro et al., 2010; Pettitt, 2011). These practices may predate the emergence of the genus Homo if the 3.2 million year old open air

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