Rare Neanderthal baby fossil reveals our ancient relatives may have begun life much like modern humans

• The earliest months of Neanderthal life have remained one of the least understood chapters of human evolution.
• Fossils from adults and older children have revealed the distinctive features that set these ancient relatives apart, yet remains from unborn babies are extraordinarily scarce.
• That has made it difficult to determine when the familiar Neanderthal body shape actually began to emerge.