Contrary to popular scientific opinion, it turns out life for Neanderthals probably wasn’t any more violent or dangerous than it was for our modern human ancestors. 

In a new study, researchers from the University of Tübingen in Germany compared the head injuries suffered by Neanderthals and the earliest modern humans living during the Upper Paleolithic era—between 80,000 and 20,000 years ago—and found that both groups experienced similar levels of head trauma. 

Their findings, published online in Nature, challenge the common assumption that Neanderthals lived particularly treacherous and violent lives, and struggled on a daily basis to survive the harsh conditions of their existence.