According to research published in the journal Nature in 2015, the oldest stone tools discovered were found at a 3.3-million-year-old site in Kenya's West Turkana. Because these stone tools predate the Oldowan toolbox by 700,000 years, the authors called the discovery “a new beginning in the known archaeological record.”
Archaeological excavations at the site, known as Lomekwi 3, began in 2011 and the first ancient artifacts were discovered.
Archaeological work continued in 2012. According to the study, more finds were discovered this time, including stone tools and fossils. A total of 149 items were excavated from this site.
Researchers say the earliest stone tools were made before the earliest humans of the genus Homo. (Mike Kemp/Photo via Getty Images)
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According to the study, the stone tools found also contained sharp stone fragments. Dating of volcanic ash and minerals around the area determined that the stone tools were 3.3 million years old.
Although these stone tools are older than Homo, it is unclear who exactly was involved in their creation, but there are many theories.
“There was a hominin called Kenyanthropus platyops, who was discovered very close to the site where the tools of Lomekwi 3 were excavated.And this hominin existed at the time when the tools were being made. '' said Dr. Nick Taylor of the national center. According to the BBC, the French scientific research institute and the University of Leiden in the Netherlands made the announcement.
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“More broadly, there is another hominid in the East African region, Australopithecus afarensis, which is famous for the Lucy fossil and is another candidate,” Taylor said.
This discovery raised many questions for researchers about the sophistication of these ancient species.
The photo above is a sculptor's depiction of Australopithecus afarensis, which is known as Lucy's fossil. This is the species that researchers claim is the mysterious creator of this tool. (Dave Einsel/Getty Images)
Dr Ignacio de la Torre, of the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, said: “Species like Australopithecines may have been intelligent enough to make stone tools, and this kind of work… “This suggests that he had the cognitive and manipulative abilities to do so,” he said, according to the BBC. .
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These 3.3 million-year-old stone tools were not found in Kenya. In fact, a study published in February 2023 in the journal Science highlights that even more stone tools discovered in Kenya are among the oldest in the world.
These special tools date back 2.9 million years and were intended to butcher hippos for meat, the researchers reported in the study.
While these stone tools may not be as old as the 3.3 million-year-old ones, the newer finds are more consistent with Oldowan stone tools that appeared in Africa and other places around the world, archaeologist Shannon McPherron said. . A professor at Germany's Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology told the outlet that the AP pointed out that he was not involved in the study.
There have been some important archaeological discoveries in Kenya, particularly stone tools over the years. The photo above was discovered in Kenya's eastern Rift Valley. (DeAgostini/Getty Images)
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Kathy Schick of the Stone Age Institute of Indiana said these tools were made by holding a rock in one hand and hitting it with the other to knock out sharp pieces. He was not involved in the study, the Associated Press said. Outlet.
These special tools were discovered at the Nyayanga site during excavations that began in 2015.
