Early hominids were systematically producing bone tools at least one million years sooner than archaeologists previously believed, according to a new study published in Nature. Researchers from the CSIC-Spanish National Research Council unearthed an ancient bone toolkit in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge that dates back 1.5 million years.
Bone Tools Show Early Humans “Knew How to Incorporate Technical Innovations”
The tools, which were made from hippo and elephant leg bones, are one million years older than any previously known tools of their kind. They were discovered at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, a key archaeological site for understanding early human evolution in East Africa. The early humans who constructed the tools “knew how to incorporate technical innovations by adapting their knowledge of stone work to the manipulation of bone remains,” said Ignacio de la Torre, lead author of the study and a paleolithic archaeologist at the CSIC-Spanish National Research Council. He said the discovery demonstrates “advances in the cognitive abilities and mental structures of these hominins.”
The oldest known stone tool industry comes from the Oldowan Period, dating as far back as 2.5 million years ago. Used by Homo habilis, an ancestor of Homo sapiens, they represent some of the eariest evidence of cultural behavior. The transition from the Oldowan to the Acheulean Period began about 1.7 million years ago. During this era, early humans made significant advancements in tool-making. Acheulean technology produced stone hand axes with more standardized and symmetrical shapes than earlier tools. The newly-discovered bone tools indicate that early humans were equally adept at repurposing bones as far back as 1.5 million years ago—much earlier than previously thought.
1.5-Million-Year-Old Artifacts Once Comprised a Toolkit
Researchers say the 27 artifacts found at Olduvai Gorge once belonged to a bone tool kit. Varying in size and shapes, the tools were identified as pieces of leg bones, mostly from elephants and hippos. Some of the tools bear pounding marks where early humans sharpened the edges of bones. Six of them have a carved grip at one end and a sharp point at the other end. Several others resemble the pear-shaped stone hand axes associated with Homo erectus. The largest of the tools reached up to 15 inches long—roughly the average distance between an adult human’s fingertips and elbow.
