Traces of world's oldest wooden building discovered in Zambia
Traces of wooden architecture that predate the birth of modern humans, Homo sapiens, have been discovered in the Republic of Zambia in southern Africa.
Archaeologists discover the world's oldest wooden structure - News - University of Liverpool
Archaeologists in Zambia discover oldest wooden structure in the world, dating to 476,000 years ago | Live Science
https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/archaeologists-in-zambia-discover-oldest-wooden-structure-in-the-world-dating-to-476000-years-ago
New research by a team of researchers from the University of Liverpool and Aberlistwyth University has unearthed well-preserved wood from the Kalambo Falls ruins in Zambia. As a result of experts analyzing the cuts of stone tools carved into the wood, it is speculated that early humans combined two large logs and used them as part of some kind of structure.
Examining the surrounding soil using luminescence dating, which reveals when minerals were last exposed to sunlight, revealed that the wood dates back at least 476,000 years. It is older than Homo sapiens, which is said to have been born about 200,000 to 100,000 years ago, suggesting that our ancestors may have been involved in woodworking since ancient times.
The research team said, ``Up until now, evidence that humans used wood was limited to making fires and digging sticks and spears. This is the oldest evidence anywhere in the world that shows that
Wood like the one discovered this time normally rots over time and is not often found in modern times. However, around Kalambo Falls, the river had deposited clay, so wood from a long time ago remained intact.
The University of Liverpool says, ``This discovery overturns the common belief that Stone Age humans were nomads.'' Not only did Kalambo Falls have many water sources, but there were trees around it, so it is thought that there was enough wood and food for a permanent settlement.
'Given the widespread use of wood, it is inconceivable that hominids did not use wood,' said Shadreck Chirikure, an archaeologist at the University of Oxford. 'This shows that hominids were making use of available resources.'
Related Posts:
in Science, Posted by log1p_kr