Neanderthals are an extinct group of archaic humans who lived in Eurasia until about 40,000 years ago.
The type specimen, Neanderthal 1, was found in 1856 in the Neander Valley in present-day Germany.
Neanderthal
The site of Kleine Feldhofer Grotte where Neanderthal 1 was discovered
Ernst Haeckel's Primate family tree showing H. stupidus (Neanderthal) as the ancestor to H. sapiens
Skullcap of Neanderthal 1, the type specimen, at the Musée de l'Homme, Paris
Archaic humans is a broad category denoting all species of the genus Homo that are not Homo sapiens. Among the earliest modern human remains are those from Jebel Irhoud in Morocco, Florisbad in South Africa (259 ka), and Omo-Kibish I in southern Ethiopia. Some examples of archaic humans include H. antecessor (1200–770 ka), H. bodoensis (1200–300 ka), H. heidelbergensis (600–200 ka), Neanderthals, H. rhodesiensis (300–125 ka) and Denisovans,
Homo rhodesiensis ("Broken Hill Cranium"): dated to 324,000 to 274,000 years ago.
Anatomical comparison of the skulls of anatomically modern humans (left) and Homo neanderthalensis (right)