Philip Thrift posted a link on Mon, 6 Nov 2000, about how early man stored
meat by digging pits in the permafrost....
http://www.human-nature.com/darwin/books/tattersall.html

This site is fascinating.  As I read more about what was found at various
sites, about the tools, knowledge these people had of animals and the ways
in which they adapted to the environment and seasons, the artwork, cooking
tools, and various skills, I was struck by how much of this detail about
early humans, is woven into the Jean M. Auel books.  She did her homework
before writing her books.  Although they are fiction, they are based on the
work of paleoanthropologists.  For those with an interst in this topic,
Auel's books provide a rich glimpse into the past, with possible depictions
of the domestication of horses, wolves/dogs, the use of herbs for healing
and culinary enjoyment, and more.

Btw:  FYI Amadeus:  Jean Auel is not suggesting that people cooked all their
meat using leather or hides to catch the fat, only that it could have been
possible to render fat using hides in a particular way, which is backed by
some anthropological evidence.  Most meat was probably cooked over a spit.

I don't think that earlier man inevitably had to eat all or most of his meat
raw in order to get the fat or keep it from dripping away.  You'll just have
to read Auel's books, which are based on extensive research findings.

Rachel