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This program sheds light on the Neanderthals, whose image has historically been depicted as extremely primitive and unskilled. In Making of Mankind: A New Era, host Richard Leakey provides detailed information about their abilities, which included burying the dead, with purposeful placement of flowers on the body. As man evolved, he became more capable of doing extraordinary things, such as painting on cave walls. Leakey takes viewers to the Lascaux Caves, where the works of ancient man, painted approximately 18,000 years ago, still have the power to impress visitors.