Archaeologists claim to have unearthed the oldest wooden structure ever discovered

(Patria) - Archaeologists have announced the discovery of the oldest wooden structure ever found, dating back almost half a million years, suggesting that our ancestors may have been more advanced than previously thought.

The exceptionally well-preserved wooden structure was discovered at Kalambo Falls in northern Zambia, near the border with Tanzania.

It dates back at least 476,000 years, long before the evolution of Homo sapiens, according to a study describing the discovery in the journal "Nature".

The wood bears cut marks indicating that stone tools were used to join two large logs to create the structure, believed to be a platform, walkway, or raised dwelling to keep our relatives above the water.

🪵🪓Found at Kalambo Falls in Zambia, European researchers say a 476,000-year-old wooden structure might be the earliest use of wood for construction ever uncoveredhttps://t.co/6uGWQjLfPn pic.twitter.com/rWsamkoa7T

— Australian Science Media Centre (@AusSMC) September 21, 2023

A collection of wooden tools, including a wedge and a digging stick, was also found at the site. Ancestors are known to have used wood at that time, but for limited purposes such as fire-starting or hunting.

Larry Barham, an archaeologist at the University of Liverpool and lead author of the study, told AFP that, to his knowledge, the previous record holder for the oldest wooden structure dated back about 9,000 years.

Barham stated that the structure was an "accidental discovery" made in 2019 during excavations at a site on the banks of the Kalambo River, above the 235-meter-high waterfall.

Discoveries involving such ancient wood are rare, as it tends to rot, leaving little trace. However, the high water levels at Kalambo Falls are believed to have preserved the structure over the centuries.

Excavations at the Kalambo site in the 1950s and 1960s uncovered some wood, but it could not be accurately dated.

This time, however, archaeologists used a new method called luminescence dating, which determines age by measuring the time since minerals were last exposed to sunlight, Hina reports.

This revealed that the structure was much older than they thought, dating back at least 476,000 years. The earliest evidence of Homo sapiens dates back to around 300,000 years ago.

An ancient wooden structure found at Kalambo Falls, Zambia—dated to about 476,000 years ago—may represent the earliest use of wood in construction, according to a paper in @Nature. https://t.co/dj5QJvaXum pic.twitter.com/Z6ArRQVU4D

— Nature Portfolio (@NaturePortfolio) September 20, 2023

However, fossils of the human relative Homo heidelbergensis, believed to have lived between 700,000 and 200,000 years ago, have been found in the region. The discovery of the wooden structure "changed my opinion about these people".

They transformed their environment to make life easier, even if they just made a platform where they could sit by the river and carry out their daily tasks.

They used intelligence, imagination, and skills to create something they had never seen before, something that had never existed before. This suggests an abstract level of thinking and "probably language" - Barham said.

Sophie Archambault de Beaune, an archaeologist at the French University of Lyon 3, who was not involved in the study, said the structure "presupposes cognitive abilities such as planning and the ability to visualize the finished product".