Human ancestors invented a bone toolkit much earlier than previously thought
Sunday, March 9, 2025 - 16:54
in Paleontology & Archaeology
The Stone Age was the original Industrial Revolution, a period that began possibly as early as 3 million years ago during which our human ancestors and their close cousins learned to sculpt a wide range of tools from rocks. But despite the era’s name, at least some Stone Age toolmakers also made frequent use of bone. How early they did so and when the practice became common, has been unclear. Now, an assemblage of bone tools from Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge suggests early hominins systematically practiced that art by 1.5 million years ago, fashioning heavy cutting tools from skeletons of hippos, elephants, and other large animals. Reported today in Nature , the finding signals that these ancient artisans possessed the cognitive capability...