For their DNA study, researchers used thimblefuls of powdered bone extracted from these three Neanderthal bones found in the Vindija cave.

The Vindija cave in Croatia, where the Neanderthal bones — remains of three women who lived between 38, 000 and 45, 000 years ago — were found.

This was no mean feat: the team tested more than 70 bones and found just one, a thigh bone found in a cave in Vindija, Croatia, that was in good enough condition for the technique to succeed.