This study is lit.<\/p>\n
Scientists have discovered charred animal remains in South Africa that are up to 1.8 million years old, potentially pushing back the timeline of human fire use by hundreds of thousands of years, per a hot new study in the journal PLOS One.<\/a><\/p>\n The researchers happened upon the revelatory find during an investigation of South Africa\u2019s Wonderwerk Cave, a repository that has harbored a treasure trove of prehistoric artifacts from stone tools<\/a> to rock art.<\/p>\n While exploring an older layer of the cavern, Stratum 11, scientists found burned bones of mammals that dated back to between 1.07 and 1.79 million years ago.<\/p>\n Scientists have found burnt bones that date back to as far as 1.8 million years ago, making them the oldest evidence of human fire use ever discovered. PLOS One<\/p>\n The researchers discovered burned bones in Wonderwerk Caves, which have produced other important ancient artifacts. PLOS One<\/p>\n Researchers said the findings highlight \u201cthe potential to refine our understanding of the emergence of hominin pyrotechnology, its behavioral significance, and its ecological underpinnings during the early Acheulean (the period from 1.76 million years ago (mya) to about 130,000 years ago).\u201d PLOS One<\/p>\n This possibly marks the oldest evidence of human pyrotechnical use, surpassing the previous record set by a 1-million-year-old bone and heat-altered tools and sediment, which were also found at Wonderwerk.<\/p>\n Learning how to harness fire represented a pivotal point in human evolution as it sparked a \u201cmomentous shift in the relations between hominins and their natural and cultural environments,\u201d per the study.<\/p>\n By taming the blaze, humans could keep warm, extend daylight hours, deter predators and scavengers, and consume a wider range of meat and plant foods through cooking. <\/a><\/p>\n The scientists were able to extend \u201cthe chronology of one of the world\u2019s earliest paleo-fire records.\u201d PLOS One<\/p>\n