Archaeologists find 476,000-year-old wooden structure in Africa: the oldest wooden structure in the world

Archaeologists have discovered traces of a 476,000-year-old wooden structure in Africa. This structure may become the oldest known wooden structure.

This is reported by UNIAN.

The remains of wood were found in the Kalambo River basin in Zambia, near the Kalambo Falls. According to the description of a new study published in the journal Nature, these remains consist of "two intertwined bars connected across by a deliberately cut notch."

Judging by the traces of stone tools, it is obvious that this was not just random wood. This object was probably created intentionally and may have served as part of a structure, such as a footpath or a raised platform that protected against periodic flooding in the region.

This find is unique because wood is very rarely preserved in this condition for such a long time. Usually, exposure to the elements quickly destroys wood. However, due to the constant water level around Kalambo Falls, this wood has remained in good condition.

Scientists from the University of Liverpool have determined the age of the wood using a new method of luminescent dating. This method measures the age of an object by considering when the minerals in the sand surrounding the remains were first exposed to sunlight.

The study found that the age of the structure is 476 thousand years. This indicates that this structure existed long before the appearance of Homo sapiens, which suggests that other hominin species could have been its creators.

Read also: A 1200-year-old Viking temple found in Norway

This discovery makes significant adjustments to our understanding of the ancient people of that time. It shows that Stone Age people were probably not exclusively travelers. The Kalambo Falls had a steady source of water and a rich forest that could be used to build permanent structures that had existed for generations.

To recap, scientists showed a shirt worn by children 1900 years ago

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