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A review by ericwelch
Dance of the Tiger: A Novel of the Ice Age by Björn Kurtén, Bjorn Kurten
4.0
5/8/10 Update: Some recent evidence found in Europe and genome studies bears on the speculative outcome of this story. See http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/07/science/07neanderthal.html?src=me&ref=general
The image of the hunched-over, beetle-browed, dark-skinned, stupid-looking, primitive Neanderthal is familiar to us all. Stephen Jay Gould, in his introduction to Bjorn Kurten's Dance of the Tiger, suggests this effigy is essentially false. The bent posture stemmed from one of the original skeletal remains which was later discovered to belong to a very arthritic individual accounting for the awkward carriage. The Neanderthal's brain was actually larger in size than present day man's, so "stupid" stems from our hubristic tendency to equate primitive with something less valuable than ourselves. And, of course, the portrayal as dark-skinned results from our innate racism assuming that primitive or ancient equals dark.
There is no question now among paleontologists that Neanderthals were indeed sapiens and that they may have had much in common with our direct ancestor, Cro-Magnon Man, who replaced the Neanderthals about 35,000 years ago. Ralph Solecki in [b:Shanidar The First Flower People|1685384|Shanidar, the first flower people|Ralph Solecki|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg|1682013] has shown how human Neanderthals were. They had quite "modern" burial customs (if one could call our current burial customs civilized - frankly they smack of the occult to me) which shows evidence of religious feeling, and advanced concept. They had quite human feelings and intelligence and, with the exception of the skull, even looked very much like modern man. What, then, accounts for the sudden disappearance of Neanderthal and their subsequent replacement exclusively by Cro-Magnon. That's what this novel is about.
Not only is this a fine story, but according to Gould, for whom I have tremendous respect, it's also good science. Bjorn Kurten is one of the world's foremost paleontologists. Kurten has weaved into his story a model of what might very well have occurred during the first contacts between Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon. Along the way, says Gould, we absorb a great deal of accurate science, "insinuating every fact and theory that I know... about human evolution during the Ice Age, glacial geology, ecology, and Ice Age mammals."
Kurten's story revolves around Tiger, a Cro-Magnon, whose father is killed while on a mammoth hunt. He is injured and found at death's door by the "trolls" as the blacks (Cro-Magnon) refer to them. The trolls are the Neanderthal, white and tall, with prominent brows and a primitive language compared to the blacks from the south. Obviously Kurten is playing with our stereotypes here. We know that our homo sapiens ancestors evolved in Africa and hence were most likely black; and as the Neanderthal had lived in Northern Europe for a long time there is no reason why they might not have adapted to the colder climate with white skin. Anyway, I refuse to give away more of the story. Suffice it to say that Kurten's solution to the disappearance of the Neanderthal is neat, having genetic and anthropological implications, and the book will challenge you in many ways.
The image of the hunched-over, beetle-browed, dark-skinned, stupid-looking, primitive Neanderthal is familiar to us all. Stephen Jay Gould, in his introduction to Bjorn Kurten's Dance of the Tiger, suggests this effigy is essentially false. The bent posture stemmed from one of the original skeletal remains which was later discovered to belong to a very arthritic individual accounting for the awkward carriage. The Neanderthal's brain was actually larger in size than present day man's, so "stupid" stems from our hubristic tendency to equate primitive with something less valuable than ourselves. And, of course, the portrayal as dark-skinned results from our innate racism assuming that primitive or ancient equals dark.
There is no question now among paleontologists that Neanderthals were indeed sapiens and that they may have had much in common with our direct ancestor, Cro-Magnon Man, who replaced the Neanderthals about 35,000 years ago. Ralph Solecki in [b:Shanidar The First Flower People|1685384|Shanidar, the first flower people|Ralph Solecki|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg|1682013] has shown how human Neanderthals were. They had quite "modern" burial customs (if one could call our current burial customs civilized - frankly they smack of the occult to me) which shows evidence of religious feeling, and advanced concept. They had quite human feelings and intelligence and, with the exception of the skull, even looked very much like modern man. What, then, accounts for the sudden disappearance of Neanderthal and their subsequent replacement exclusively by Cro-Magnon. That's what this novel is about.
Not only is this a fine story, but according to Gould, for whom I have tremendous respect, it's also good science. Bjorn Kurten is one of the world's foremost paleontologists. Kurten has weaved into his story a model of what might very well have occurred during the first contacts between Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon. Along the way, says Gould, we absorb a great deal of accurate science, "insinuating every fact and theory that I know... about human evolution during the Ice Age, glacial geology, ecology, and Ice Age mammals."
Kurten's story revolves around Tiger, a Cro-Magnon, whose father is killed while on a mammoth hunt. He is injured and found at death's door by the "trolls" as the blacks (Cro-Magnon) refer to them. The trolls are the Neanderthal, white and tall, with prominent brows and a primitive language compared to the blacks from the south. Obviously Kurten is playing with our stereotypes here. We know that our homo sapiens ancestors evolved in Africa and hence were most likely black; and as the Neanderthal had lived in Northern Europe for a long time there is no reason why they might not have adapted to the colder climate with white skin. Anyway, I refuse to give away more of the story. Suffice it to say that Kurten's solution to the disappearance of the Neanderthal is neat, having genetic and anthropological implications, and the book will challenge you in many ways.