Oldest Dutch Neanderthal gets a face!

The oldest ancient Dutchie, Neanderthal Krijn, has been given a facial reconstruction. Unlike other reconstructions, Krijn has an approachable, smiling face. 🧑✨

While only a fragment of his skull survived, The National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden has reconstructed the ancient Nederlander‘s face — reports NOS.

An amateur palaeontologist discovered a fragment of fossil on the coast of Zeeland, which was sucked up from the North Sea.

It is estimated that he lived 50,000-70,000 years ago in Zeeland (but maybe he was Belgian?). Experts believe that he died around his 20th birthday. 🎂

It’s not known if Krijn lived on a diet of haring and boterhammen at the time. 🐟

fossil-fragment-dutch-neanderthal
The fragment of Krijn. Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden/CC0

A unique fossil

He also has a distinctive bump on his head, where palaeontologists believe he had a tumour — based on the state of his skull.

Curator Luc Amkreutz believes that the fossil will be attractive to people and says, “I think it’s cool to see such an old fossil, but when I look at the image I feel a certain kinship. This is not a species that was as far away from us as they thought until recently.”

Krijn will be showing off his new smile at the Doggerland Exhibition — about prehistoric era life — in Leiden starting from September 7, 2021.

What are your thoughts on this caveman’s new face? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Feature Image: National Museum of Antiquities, Leiden

Nicole Ogden 🇹🇭 🇺🇸
Nicole Ogden 🇹🇭 🇺🇸
Hailing from the bustling city of Bangkok, Nicole is a Thai/American international student who came to the Netherlands to study linguistics. When she's not reading books or listening to true crime podcasts, she's practising her singing and guitar skills! She is also attempting to pick up the Dutch language (moeilijk).

1 COMMENT

  1. We have just met Krijn. A very easy going face expression which we found very Dutch! All other kinds of Neaderthals we have seen up to now do have harsh face expressions.
    If what science says Krijn is circa 50 to 70.000 years old, we know then humans have not evolved, but have gone through changes by racial mix.

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