Stone Age

Marine Archaeologists Reveal Submerged Wooden Structure From the Stone Age

Archaeologists have spotted an 8,000-year-old wooden platform in the waters off southern Great Britain. The mostly intact find sat in a larger archaeological site 35 feet below the water’s surface. It represents a substantial increase in the amount of ancient worked wood found in the United Kingdom, and scientists hypothesize that it was a platform…

Human History Ryan F. Mandelbaum Aug 23

This Rock Shelter in Ethiopia May Be the Earliest Evidence of Humans Living in the Mountains

Archaeologists working in the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia have uncovered the earliest evidence to date of human habitation in a high-altitude environment. Living over 11,000 feet above sea level, these early mountaineers ate rodents to survive the harsh ice age conditions. New research published this week in Science describes the oldest known human occupancy of…

Human History George Dvorsky Aug 9

Going to The Caveman Dentist Was Probably a Nightmare

If you think your experience with the dentist is scary, just think about how bad the caveman dentist’s office would have been. There’d be no painkillers, no drills, and the fillings would be made from tar and plant fibers. And god, what would the awkward small talk be like? Scientists found 13000-year-old human teeth in…

Tech News Ryan F. Mandelbaum Apr 8

Ötzi the Iceman Was Making Prosciutto Over 5,000 Years Ago

New research on Ötzi the Iceman, an exquisitely preserved 5,300-year-old human found in a European glacier, shows that he ate a form of dry-cured meat known as “speck”—a fatty, bacon-like snack that’s still found on charcuterie boards today. In other words, prehistoric, Copper Age Europeans were eating a form of prosciutto over 5,000 years ago.…

Tech News George Dvorsky Jan 20

Details of Earliest Human Dentistry Make Me Want to Cry

Dentists are scary. Even in the most modern medical scenario, it is undeniably horrifying for someone to stick sharp objects in your mouth. Imagine what it was like 14,000 years ago. Actually, you don’t have to because a team of scientists just found the earliest example of dentistry, and it’s fucking horrifying. A new study…

Tech News Adam Clark Estes Jul 16

A Handful Of Bronze-Age Men Could Have Fathered Two Thirds Of Europeans

Europe has surprisingly little genetic variety. Learning how and when the modern gene-pool came together has been a long journey. But thanks to new technological advances a picture is slowly coming together of repeated colonization by peoples from the east with more efficient lifestyles. Top image: An 1899 painting by Viktor Vasnetsov imagining a kurgan…

io9 Daniel Zadik — The Conversation May 22

The Remains Of A Stone Age Couple Found In A Spooning Embrace

Archaeologists working at the Alepotrypa Cave in Greece have discovered a rare 5,800-year-old double burial in which two well-preserved skeletons were found in what appears to be the spooning position. This excavation site is one of the largest Neolithic burial sites in all of Europe. The cave has a huge interior, with some of its…

io9 George Dvorsky Feb 23

Early Humans May Have Interbred With Neanderthals 55,000 Years Ago

It’s widely acknowledged that modern Europeans mated with Neanderthals at some point in the past. We’re just not entirely sure when or where. The recent discovery of an ancient skull in Israel may represent the critical missing link anthropologists have been looking for. The 55,000-year-old partial skull was discovered in Northern Israel’s Mano Cave in…

io9 George Dvorsky Jan 29

Anthropologists Have Mapped All 61 Tattoos On Ötzi The Iceman

By using an innovative non-invasive photographic technique, European researchers have managed to locate and map the extensive set of tattoos on the exquisitely preserved remains of Ötzi the Iceman. Remarkably, they even found a previously unknown tattoo on his ribcage. Ötzi’s frozen remains were discovered by two German tourists in the Ötzal Alps on the…

io9 George Dvorsky Jan 28

Archaeologists Confirm That Stonehenge Was Once A Complete Circle

Though archaeologists have long suspected that the huge neolithic stones of Stonehenge once formed a complete circle, evidence in support of the claim has remained elusive. Now, owing to a spat of dry weather, the mystery appears to have been solved. Stonehenge’s current configuration is that of an incomplete circle. In an effort to prove…

io9 George Dvorsky Sep 1

Modern culture emerged in Africa 20,000 years earlier than anybody realized

Archeologists studying the remains of early humans in Africa have unveiled a number of ancient artifacts that push back the advent of modern culture to 44,000 years ago — way earlier than the previous estimates of 22,000 years ago. The new dates are based on the radiocarbon dating of tools and other items found at…

io9 George Dvorsky Jul 31

Constructing Stonehenge was the project that unified Britain

We now know that Stonehenge’s stones traveled great distances to reach their final destination in Wiltshire, some coming from as far away as western Wales. The sheer amount of human power required to move and place those stones might very well have been the point of the whole endeavor, as a team of archaeologists now…

io9 Lauren Davis Jun 23

“Stone breadcrumbs” reveal humans who left Africa over 100,000 years ago

Until recently, scientists thought humans first left Africa between forty and seventy thousand years ago. But the archaeological record keeps painting a far different, more ancient picture, one that took humans deep into the Arabian peninsula 100,000 years ago. The 40,000 to 70,000 year estimate comes from genetic evidence, which suggests all living humans are…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins Dec 1

7,000-year-old archaeological site was a Stone Age rest area

A recently uncovered archaeological site in the Scottish highlands dates back to the Mesolithic, roughly 10,000 years ago. What makes it so unusual is that this isn’t a settlement – it’s the prehistoric equivalent of a highway pit stop. Sadly, there are no stone-operated vending machines, vaguely grotty bathrooms, or designated wolf-walking areas at this…

io9 Alasdair Wilkins Jul 19

Ancient Man Used Stone “Sat Nav” 5000 Years Ago

New research is suggesting that Stone Age Britons were arranging hilltop monuments in an elaborate grid of isosceles triangles—allowing travelers to navigate the country without maps. Apparently, these markers included famous sites like Stonehenge and The Mount. Basically, these stone markers were a like a primitive GPS—and the accuracy was quite astounding. Researcher Tom Brooks…

Tech News Sean Fallon Sep 14

Neolithic Knives Take Cutting Back To The Stone Age

Designer Matthias Kaeding is looking to the past for design inspiration…like way in the past. His ceramic knives mimic those you might find in a cave during the Stone Age. And really, why not? It may only be a concept, but if you have ever seen someone cut up meat with a hunk of obsidian…

Tech News Sean Fallon Jul 14

Marine Archaeologists Reveal Submerged Wooden Structure From the Stone Age

This Rock Shelter in Ethiopia May Be the Earliest Evidence of Humans Living in the Mountains

Going to The Caveman Dentist Was Probably a Nightmare

Ötzi the Iceman Was Making Prosciutto Over 5,000 Years Ago

Details of Earliest Human Dentistry Make Me Want to Cry

A Handful Of Bronze-Age Men Could Have Fathered Two Thirds Of Europeans

The Remains Of A Stone Age Couple Found In A Spooning Embrace

Early Humans May Have Interbred With Neanderthals 55,000 Years Ago

Anthropologists Have Mapped All 61 Tattoos On Ötzi The Iceman

Archaeologists Confirm That Stonehenge Was Once A Complete Circle

Modern culture emerged in Africa 20,000 years earlier than anybody realized

Constructing Stonehenge was the project that unified Britain

“Stone breadcrumbs” reveal humans who left Africa over 100,000 years ago

7,000-year-old archaeological site was a Stone Age rest area

Ancient Man Used Stone “Sat Nav” 5000 Years Ago

Neolithic Knives Take Cutting Back To The Stone Age

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