Latest news with #earlyhumans
The Independent
14 hours ago
- Science
- The Independent
Ice Age cave find upends what we know about Australia's first people
rare artefacts dating to the last ice age at a cave in Australia 's Blue Mountains, providing definitive proof that the rugged ranges were once occupied by the continent's first people. Researchers working with First Nations community members found that Dargan Shelter, a frigid site at an elevation of about 1073m (3280 ft) west of Sydney, was occupied by early humans 20,000 years ago. The findings, published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour, provide the oldest evidence yet of occupation above 700 metres in Australia. It upends previous beliefs that the Blue Mountain ranges were too difficult to occupy during the last ice age, and also hints that such icy landscapes may not have been a hurdle for early human migration. The research also raises further questions about the ingenuity of early indigenous Australians that enabled them to adapt to these inhospitable conditions. During the last Ice Age, frigid conditions extended to the upper reaches of the Blue Mountains above 600 metres with temperatures at least 8.2 degrees cooler than today, and vegetation much sparser than modern times. Little firewood would have been available in this region during the ice age, and water sources would have been frozen through winter, scientists say. 'Until now, we thought the Australian high country was too difficult to occupy during the last ice age,' said archaeologist Wayne Brennan from the University of Sydney. 'Yet, despite the harsh conditions, our research demonstrates people were moving in and through this high elevation landscape, which is approximately 400m above the treeline,' Dr Brennan said. In the latest excavations, archaeologists unearthed nearly 700 artefacts at the cave site dating to the last Ice Age, including features of a hearth. Many of these were prehistoric tools likely used by Australia's first people for cutting or scraping, researchers say. 'It was the excellent state of preservation that enabled us to construct such a robust chronology for Dargan Cave spanning the last 20,000 years,' said Philip Piper, another author of the study. Most of the claystone tools unearthed were made locally, but one seems to have come from the Jenolan Caves area, which is about 50km (31 miles) away from the Dargan Shelter site, indicating ancient people were travelling from the north and south. While the Blue Mountains range is a UNESCO World Heritage-listed site recognised for its plant and animal diversity, there have been no safeguards to protect the cultural heritage of its indigenous people, researchers say. 'Our people have walked, lived and thrived in the Blue Mountains for thousands of years and we knew the cave was there,' said study author and Dharug woman Leanne Watson Redpath. 'It is not only a tangible connection to our ancestors who used it as a meeting place for sharing, storytelling and survival, but is a part of our cultural identity. We need to respect and protect our heritage for the benefit of all Australians,' she said. Scientists are still unsure which early people accessed the mountains during the last Ice Age. They suspect multiple indigenous groups may have been connected to the region. 'We hope that by combining our traditional knowledge with scientific research, we can protect these invaluable storehouses of our history for generations to come,' Dr Brennan said.
The Independent
12-05-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Mystery stone circle reveals ‘ultimate adventure story' of human presence in Europe
Strange stone circles found at the Isle of Skye could be evidence of the earliest human occupation of Scotland's frigid northwest, pushing survival boundaries, a new study says. The research sheds more light on the 'ultimate adventure' undertaken by early humans to reach the ' far end ' of Scotland, say archaeologists from the University of Glasgow. The enigmatic circles, each between 3 and 5m (10 and 16ft) in size, as well as stone tools found at the site, have been dated to around 11,500 – 11,000 years ago – an era known as the Late Upper Palaeolithic (LUP) period. This provides proof of what was likely a large concentration of a pioneer human population at this Scottish site, which appears to be below modern sea level. The new findings, published in The Journal of Quaternary Science, indicate that early humans from this period ventured much further north than previously believed. 'This is a hugely significant discovery which offers a new perspective on the earliest human occupation yet known, of north-west Scotland,' said archaeologist Karen Hardy, who led the study. During this period, when much of west Scotland was buried under ice, nomadic hunter-gatherers from northern Europe crossed Doggerland, an area that is now covered by the North Sea, to occupy Skye, researchers say. 'The journey made by these pioneering people who left their lowland territories in mainland Europe to travel northwards into the unknown, is the ultimate adventure story,' Dr Hardy said. 'As they journeyed northwards, most likely following animal herds, they eventually reached Scotland, where the western landscape was dramatically changing as glaciers melted and the land rebounded as it recovered from the weight of the ice,' he said. On reaching the Isle of Skye, these early people crafted tools from stone found locally. They chose to settle down at the place due to its good access to coastal and riverine resources, as well as natural materials like ochre which were highly valued by ancient cultures, researchers say. The new study reflects an early human presence in the extreme northwest of Europe, pushing boundaries of survival in frigid conditions. Here, the early humans lived in a fragmented, fluctuating, and volatile environment amid melting glaciers, mountains, and oceans – vastly different from the low-lying environments of the northwestern edge of the Great European Plain. The island's early population likely originated in the mainland of northwest Europe, 'crossed Doggerland into what is now Britain, and eventually reached the far north of the Isle of Skye', according to the study. 'Together with the new stone alignments and several other nearby sites, this region now contains more evidence for the LUP than anywhere else in Scotland,' scientists wrote.
