That Nature article was a fascinating one. And I agree with you whole heartedly. It does not matter whether Neanderthal traded or made it. We don't engage in trade with the chimpanzees or gorillas.
Trade requires language.
If he made the object then he has an aesthetic sense like us. The implications are that Neanderthal first appears in rocks dated at 230-225,000 years ago at Pontnewydd, England and Ehringsdorf, Germany. Thus if you grant humanity to Neanderthal, Humanity then definitely extends back to 230,000 years ago. Which is one of my points from last fall that evidence of human activity goes back at least 2.7 million years ago. Thus Adam must be further back than most Christians want to believe.