Turkish cave discovery suggests Neanderthals and humans shared cultural practices

In the layered sediment of a Turkish cave, archaeologists have found something that quietly unsettles a long-held story: that Neanderthals and modern humans were worlds apart. The artifacts recovered there — tools, ornaments, traces of ritual — suggest two species living side by side, shaping their lives in strikingly similar ways, and perhaps shaping each other. Whether through exchange or independent discovery, the cave asks us to reconsider where we drew the line between ourselves and those we once called primitive.