The moment the earliest known man-made fire was uncovered
2 days ago
- #human evolution
- #archaeology
- #prehistoric technology
- Earliest known human-created fire discovered in Barnham, UK, dating back 400,000 years.
- Fire-making technology involved flint and pyrite (fool's gold) to create sparks.
- Discovery pushes back the timeline of human fire-making by 350,000 years.
- Fire enabled cooking, warmth, and brain development, accelerating human evolution.
- Site reveals evidence of repeated small wood fires, not natural wildfires.
- Early Neanderthals, not Homo sapiens, likely made these fires.
- Fire-making technology may have spread across Europe via land bridges.
- Discovery published in Nature, prompting further research into human technological evolution.