Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Oldest Javelins Predate Modern Humans, Raise Questions on Evolution. By Charles Q. Choi.

Oldest Javelins Predate Modern Humans, Raise Questions on Evolution. By Charles Q. Choi. National Geographic Daily News, November 26, 2013.

The oldest known stone-tipped projectiles have been discovered in Ethiopia. The javelins are roughly 280,000 years old and predate the earliest known fossils of our species, Homo sapiens, by about 80,000 years.


Earliest Stone-Tipped Projectiles from the Ethiopian Rift Date to >279,000 Years Ago. By Yonatan Sahle et al. Plos One, November 13, 2013. Also here.

Abstract:

Projectile weapons (i.e. those delivered from a distance) enhanced prehistoric hunting efficiency by enabling higher impact delivery and hunting of a broader range of animals while reducing confrontations with dangerous prey species. Projectiles therefore provided a significant advantage over thrusting spears. Composite projectile technologies are considered indicative of complex behavior and pivotal to the successful spread of Homo sapiens. Direct evidence for such projectiles is thus far unknown from >80,000 years ago. Data from velocity-dependent microfracture features, diagnostic damage patterns, and artifact shape reported here indicate that pointed stone artifacts from Ethiopia were used as projectile weapons (in the form of hafted javelin tips) as early as >279,000 years ago. In combination with the existing archaeological, fossil and genetic evidence, these data isolate eastern Africa as a source of modern cultures and biology.


Oldest Human Fossils Identified. By Hillary Mayell. National Geographic News, February 16, 2005.

Stratigraphic placement and age of modern humans from Kibish, Ethiopia. By Ian McDougall, Francis H. Brown, and John G. Fleagle. Nature, Vol. 433, No. 7027 (February 17, 2005).