Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Time_Traveller
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Bronze 'fairy world' artifacts unearthed in China
July 3, 2022

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Archaeologists have unearthed thousands of Bronze Age artifacts pertaining to a mystical alternative realm.
Discovered at the Sanxingdui archaeological site in Sichuan, the most recent finds include a bronze snake sculpture with a human head, gold masks, a bronze altar and a bronze box containing jade.

Since the 1980s, excavations at the site have unearthed around 13,000 artifacts dating back to the Bronze Age between 4,500 and 3,000 years ago.

Many of these pertain to an alternative "fairy" realm that the people of the time strongly believed in.
https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/n ... d-in-china

This one is quite fascinating as it's in-between 2 eras.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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weatheriscool
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Oldest European human fossil possibly found in Spain
https://phys.org/news/2022-07-oldest-eu ... sibly.html

Image
Until now, the oldest hominid fossil found in Europe was a jawbone which was determined to be 1.2 million years old.

A jawbone fragment discovered in northern Spain last month could be the oldest known fossil of a human ancestor found to date in Europe, Spanish paleontologists said Friday.

The researchers said the fossil found at an archaeological site on June 30 in northern Spain's Atapuerca mountain range is around 1.4 million years old.

Until now, the oldest hominid fossil found in Europe was a jawbone found at the same site in 2007 which was determined to be 1.2 million years old.

Atapuerca contains one of the richest records of prehistoric human occupation in Europe.

Researchers will now have to "complete" their first estimate for the age of the jawbone fragment using scientific dating techniques, palaeoanthropologist Jose-Maria Bermudez de Castro, the co-director of the Atapuerca research project, said during a news conference.

But since the jawbone fragment was found some two meters below the layer of earth where the jawbone in 2007 was found, "it is logical and reasonable to think it is older," he added.
Last edited by weatheriscool on Fri Jul 15, 2022 7:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
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caltrek
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Chinese Fossils Point to a Surprising Link Between East Asia and Early Americas
by Candace Cheung
July 14, 2022

Introduction:
(Courthouse News) — Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have sequenced the genome of a Late Pleistocene human, revealing a connection beyond East Asia that may shed light on human migration and population patterns in the early days of our development.

The studied genome was sourced from a fossil found at Malu Dong, or Red Deer Cave, in the Yunnan province in southern China. The fossil was determined to have come from the Late Pleistocene, around 14,000 years ago, and is the first genome sequenced from this era in southern East Asia. Although Yunnan’s environment makes fossil preservation difficult, there was enough genetic material for scientists to extract DNA from the fossil skull cap.

“The Red Dear Cave site unearthed an important human remains, which based on morphological studies, were proposed as an archaic human species like Neanderthal or a mix between archaic human and modern human. To test this hypothesis, we conducted ancient DNA (aDNA) analyses, and proved that MZR is in fact a female modern human,” said Bing Su, a researcher at CAS and an author of the study published Thursday in the journal Current Biology.

The genetic sample from this anatomically modern human, dubbed Mengzi Ren (MZR), for the county in which she was found, allowed scientists to investigate her affiliation with modern human populations.
Further extract:
“Based on our data, we proposed that there might be a coastal migratory route along the coastal line of East Asia continent during Late Pleistocene, by way of Japan, reaching northeastern Siberia, and eventually crossed the Bering Strait, leading to the peopling of the New World,” Su explains.
Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/chines ... mericas/

caltrek’s comment: Thor Hyerdahl would have loved to hear of this finding. Further, I doubt that he would have found it to be so "surprising" as he long argued that a great deal of migration occurred via cross-ocean migratory routes, even before the common era.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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caltrek wrote: Thu Jul 14, 2022 11:22 pm Chinese Fossils Point to a Surprising Link Between East Asia and Early Americas
by Candace Cheung
July 14, 2022

Introduction:
(Courthouse News) — Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have sequenced the genome of a Late Pleistocene human, revealing a connection beyond East Asia that may shed light on human migration and population patterns in the early days of our development.

The studied genome was sourced from a fossil found at Malu Dong, or Red Deer Cave, in the Yunnan province in southern China. The fossil was determined to have come from the Late Pleistocene, around 14,000 years ago, and is the first genome sequenced from this era in southern East Asia. Although Yunnan’s environment makes fossil preservation difficult, there was enough genetic material for scientists to extract DNA from the fossil skull cap.

“The Red Dear Cave site unearthed an important human remains, which based on morphological studies, were proposed as an archaic human species like Neanderthal or a mix between archaic human and modern human. To test this hypothesis, we conducted ancient DNA (aDNA) analyses, and proved that MZR is in fact a female modern human,” said Bing Su, a researcher at CAS and an author of the study published Thursday in the journal Current Biology.

The genetic sample from this anatomically modern human, dubbed Mengzi Ren (MZR), for the county in which she was found, allowed scientists to investigate her affiliation with modern human populations.
Further extract:
“Based on our data, we proposed that there might be a coastal migratory route along the coastal line of East Asia continent during Late Pleistocene, by way of Japan, reaching northeastern Siberia, and eventually crossed the Bering Strait, leading to the peopling of the New World,” Su explains.
Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/chines ... mericas/

caltrek’s comment: Thor Hyerdahl would have loved to hear of this finding. Further, I doubt that he would have found it to be so "surprising" as he long argued that a great deal of migration occurred via cross-ocean migratory routes, even before the common era.

Humanity has not gotten more intelligent in the last few hundred years. Some measurements of brainsize to body suggest that humanity could have been more intelligent in the past...I think the world we live in today is far too easy and leads to a cycle of less and less intelligence.

I honestly believe that one day we'll find ships and even entire civilizations that are far older then anything we know today. We don't know 90% of human history.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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New Mexico mammoths among best evidence for early humans in North America
https://phys.org/news/2022-08-mexico-ma ... umans.html
by University of Texas at Austin
About 37,000 years ago, a mother mammoth and her calf met their end at the hands of human beings.

Bones from the butchering site record how humans shaped pieces of their long bones into disposable blades to break down their carcasses, and rendered their fat over a fire. But a key detail sets this site apart from others from this era. It's in New Mexico—a place where most archaeological evidence does not place humans until tens of thousands of years later.

A recent study led by scientists with The University of Texas at Austin finds that the site offers some of the most conclusive evidence for humans settling in North America much earlier than conventionally thought.

The researchers revealed a wealth of evidence rarely found in one place. It includes fossils with blunt-force fractures, bone flake knives with worn edges, and signs of controlled fire. And thanks to carbon dating analysis on collagen extracted from the mammoth bones, the site also comes with a settled age of 36,250 to 38,900 years old, making it among the oldest known sites left behind by ancient humans in North America.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Chromosomal study suggests people were living in South America as far back as 18,000 years ago
https://phys.org/news/2022-08-chromosom ... years.html
by Bob Yirka , Phys.org
A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in Argentina has found chromosomal evidence of people living in South America as far back as 18,000 years ago. The group has published a paper describing their work and findings on the open access site PLOS ONE.

Over the past several years, scientists have found evidence of people first traveling to North America from Siberia approximately 14,000 to 17,000 years ago, using what was then a land bridge to Alaska. In this new effort, the researchers have found evidence suggesting that the timeline may have to be pushed back a bit.

Rather than looking for tools or bones left behind by the first people to travel to South America—which presumably was populated by people moving south down through North America and then through Central America—the researchers used a chromosomal approach.

The researchers collected tissue samples from 13 people living in Argentina who were believed to be descended from ancient migrants to the region (members of the Q Haplogroup), rather than the New World. The researchers then studied their Y chromosomes as a means of establishing a timeline. The Y chromosome has the longest stretch of non-recombinant DNA and is passed down to male offspring and because of that it provides a history of the paternal lineage.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Huge complex of 500 standing stones found in Spain
https://phys.org/news/2022-08-huge-comp ... spain.html

Carnac in northwestern France is one of the most famous megalithic sites in the world with some 3,000 standing stones .

A huge megalithic complex of more than 500 standing stones has been discovered in southern Spain which could be one of the largest in Europe, archaeologists told AFP Thursday.

The stones were discovered on a plot of land in Huelva, a province which flanks the southernmost part of Spain's border with Portugal, near the Guadiana River.

Spanning some 600 hectares (1,500 acres), the land had been earmarked for an avocado planation.

But before granting the permit, the regional authorities requested a survey in light of the site's possible archaeological significance—and revealed the presence of the stones.

"This is the biggest and most diverse collection of standing stones grouped together in the Iberian peninsula," said Jose Antonio Linares, a researcher at Huelva University and one of the project's three directors.
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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11,000-Year-Old Ceremonial Mounds Are Oldest Known Human-Made Structures In North America by Ben Taub
August 23, 2022

Introduction:
(IFL Science)Two six-meter (20-foot) high mounds on the campus of Louisiana State University (LSU) are the oldest human-made structures ever discovered in North America, according to new research in the American Journal of Science. Using radiocarbon dating, the study authors determined that construction of the mounds began around 11,000 years and was completed over several millennia.

Analysis of sediment cores taken from the two LSU Campus Mounds revealed that they were built up in layers, the oldest of which containing ash from burned reeds and cane plants. Amongst this ash, the researchers found microscopic fragments of charred mammal bones called osteons.

“The layers of reed and cane phytoliths, containing very small numbers of osteons, are indicative of very hot fires,” write the authors. Such infernos would have been too hot for cooking, and are therefore likely to have served a ritual function. “This finding supports the argument that the fires were used for ceremonials or cremations,” continue the researchers.

Tantalizingly, the team was unable to determine whether the osteons were of a human or animal origin. “We did request permission to perform DNA tests on the microscopic bone material found, but permission was denied by the Native American tribal communities that were contacted,” they reveal.
Conclusion:
Despite being forsaken, though, the two small hills have withstood the test of time, leading the authors to speculate that “the LSU Campus Mounds may represent the oldest known and still intact, man-made structures on Earth.”
Read more here: https://www.iflscience.com/11-000-year ... ica-65013
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Re: Human Prehistory (3.3 million years BC – 3500 BC)

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Sequencing 777 Ancient Human Genomes Reveals History Of “Cradle Of Western Civilization”
by Dr. Beccy Corkill
August 26, 2022

Introduction:
(IFL Science) For thousands of years, humans lived, worked, and grew kingdoms across an area called the “Southern Arc”, spanning southeastern Europe and Western Asia – and it is thought to be the “Cradle of Western Civilisation”. Now, scientists have created a complex population history timeline of the area from the earliest farming cultures to post-medieval times, by sequencing the ancient DNA from 777 humans.

We know through historical accounts (i.e., word of mouth, text, and art) of the human populations and people that lived in the Southern Arc, however, the story is never completely accurate – have you ever heard of “History is Written by Victors”? However, thanks to archaeology, paleobiology, and DNA sequencing more accurate historical timelines can be created. The research team has published three studies detailing the results in the journal Science.

These studies were a colossal task and very challenging research. “It was an amazing achievement to coordinate the work of more than 200 co-authors from many countries, especially since much of this work took place during the COVID pandemic. Analyzing all this data and making sense of it took the expertise of multiple disciplines.” Dr Iosif Lazaridis, first author of the three papers, told IFLScience.
Read more here: https://www.iflscience.com/sequencing- ... ion-65058
Don't mourn, organize.

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