中文导读 尼安德特人是约4万年前从欧洲消失的古人类。西班牙北部的纳瓦拉（Navarre）地处比利牛斯山脉西段，考古学家早就在这一带找到过尼安德特人活动的大量痕迹，却一直没有在纳瓦拉发现过他们的骨骼。2026年10月19日，由加泰罗尼亚人类古生态与社会演化研究所（IPHES-CERCA）发起、两位共同负责人 Andion Arteaga 和 Mikel Arlegi 领导的国际团队，在纳瓦拉政府主席 María Chivite 出席的活动上公布：前几个发掘季在阿邦茨洞穴（Abauntz Cave）出土的6块骨骼碎片，属于一名生活在约4.6万年前的成年男性尼安德特人。其中4块来自右手（3块掌骨和1块中节指骨），另2块通过蛋白质分析确认为人骨；放射性碳测年给出约4.4万至4.9万年前的范围，古DNA保存得格外好。文章大致按“发现—证据—意义—未解问题”展开：先交代这一空白如何被填补，再说明研究者怎样鉴定骨骼、DNA为何难得，接着解释年代和洞穴位置的意义，最后点出遗传分析和新一轮发掘仍在进行。阅读时可留意 but、however、even so 等词如何表示转折和让步，以及 may、may one day 如何限定尚未得出的结论。
正文 For many years , scientists had plenty of signs that Neanderthals once lived in the western Pyrenees , the mountains between Spain and France . They had found stone tools and other traces of these ancient humans . But in Navarre , a region in northern Spain , they had never found a single Neanderthal bone . That has now changed . On October 19, researchers showed six small pieces of bone from Abauntz Cave and said they belonged to a Neanderthal man who lived about 46,000 years ago .
本段译文 多年来，科学家掌握了大量迹象，表明尼安德特人曾生活在西班牙与法国之间的比利牛斯山脉西段。他们找到过石器和这些古人类留下的其他痕迹。但在西班牙北部的纳瓦拉，他们从未找到过哪怕一块尼安德特人的骨头。如今情况变了。10月19日，研究人员展示了出自阿邦茨洞穴的6小块骨头，并表示它们属于一名生活在约4.6万年前的尼安德特男子。
The bones were dug up a couple of seasons ago . Four of them come from the right hand of an adult : three bones from the palm and one from the middle of a finger . The other two pieces were too small to recognize by their shape , so the team tested the proteins inside them and found that they were human as well . Genetic tests then showed that the remains came from a male Neanderthal . Radiocarbon dating placed him between about 44,000 and 49,000 years ago .
本段译文 这些骨头是几个发掘季之前挖出来的。其中4块来自一名成年人的右手：3块是手掌的骨头，1块是一根手指的中段骨头。另外两块太小，无法凭形状辨认，于是团队检测了其中的蛋白质，发现它们同样属于人类。随后的基因检测显示，这些遗骸来自一名男性尼安德特人。放射性碳测年把他的年代定在大约4.4万至4.9万年前。
The DNA may be the most exciting part . Genetic material breaks down over time , and it rarely survives for tens of thousands of years . At Abauntz , however , the DNA was unusually well preserved . “Being able to recover ancient DNA and obtain direct dates for the fossils is particularly significant ,” said Mikel Arlegi , one of the project’s two leaders
本段译文 DNA或许是最令人兴奋的部分。遗传物质会随时间分解，很少能保存数万年。然而在阿邦茨，DNA保存得格外完好。“能够提取古DNA并直接测定化石年代，意义尤其重大。”该项目的两位负责人之一 Mikel Arlegi 说。
The date also matters . About 46,000 years ago , Neanderthals still lived in many parts of Europe . Only a few thousand years later , around 40,000 years ago , they disappeared , at a time when modern humans were spreading across the continent . The new fossils therefore come from the last chapter of Neanderthal history . The cave’s location adds to their value . It lies on a natural route between Spain and the rest of Europe , so it may help scientists learn how groups moved and met on both sides of the mountains .
本段译文 年代同样重要。约4.6万年前，尼安德特人仍生活在欧洲许多地方。仅仅几千年后，大约4万年前，他们就消失了，而那正是现代人类在欧洲大陆扩散的时期。因此，这批新化石来自尼安德特人历史的最后一章。洞穴的位置也让它们更有价值。它位于西班牙通往欧洲其他地区的一条天然通道上，因此可能帮助科学家了解山脉两侧的人群如何迁移和相遇。
The bones also tell a smaller story . Some carry bite marks from meat-eating animals , which offer clues about what happened to the body after death Nearby , the team found stone tools and animal bones , some with signs that people had cut them up for food .
本段译文 这些骨头还讲述了一个更小的故事。其中一些带有食肉动物的咬痕，为了解此人死后遗体经历了什么提供了线索。团队还在附近发现了石器和动物骨头，其中一些带有人们为取食而切割它们的痕迹。
Much is still unknown . The genetic analyses , done with partners in Austria and Germany , are not finished , and a new dig is already under way in the cave . Even so , Navarre now has direct proof of the Neanderthals who once lived there , and their DNA may one day show how they were related to other groups in Europe
本段译文 仍有许多未知之处。与奥地利和德国合作伙伴共同开展的遗传分析尚未完成，洞穴里新一轮发掘也已经开始。即便如此，纳瓦拉如今已有了尼安德特人曾在此生活的直接证据，而他们的DNA有朝一日或许能揭示他们与欧洲其他人群之间的亲缘关系。
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