Cosmos
Cosmos is a quarterly science magazine. We aim to inspire curiosity in ‘The Science of Everything’ and make the world of science accessible to everyone.
By Cosmos
As humans we are endlessly curious about our past – especially the ancient past.
What were our ancient ancestors doing thousands of years ago? Probably not getting hooked on social media platforms like Tik Rock and Twigger (later renamed to Eggs).
Jokes aside, the reality of humanity’s ancient past continues to throw up surprises as archaeologists continue to uncover more about how our ancestors lived and died.
Here are some unexpected findings from this year.
Apparent incest prevention
A genetic study of some of western Europe’s last Stone Age hunter-gatherers showed that the ancient community may have tried to avoid inbreeding.
The hunter-gatherers lived 8,300–6,760 years ago in what is today, France.
Around the same time, nearby areas saw the emergence of farming communities for the first time .
The genetic analysis shows a potential strategy of mixing with other hunter-gatherers to prevent inbreeding. Some of the people sharing the same graves often were not related at all, but still shared a close bond.
How this came about is a mystery.
Early northern exposure
Modern human remains in a cave in Germany “fundamentally changed” the story of our species’ migration into northern Europe.
Detailed analysis showed that Homo sapiens occupied the cave 47,500 years ago. This overlaps with the presence in the region of Neanderthals.
The research was based on a re-excavation of a cave 240km south of Berlin which was first explored in the 1930s. Artefacts unearthed in the earlier excavations were dated to 43,000 years ago.
DNA analysis of the new finds pushes occupation of the cave back more than 4,000 years. It means that modern humans reached Europe’s higher latitudes much earlier than previously thought.
Roman cult temple
A 1,700-year-old temple discovered in northern Italy offered new clues to the transition of the ancient Roman Empire’s transition to Christianity.
The temple shows the continuities between pagan traditions and the early Christian Roman world that are often glossed over.
It highlights that, despite Roman rulers adopting Christianity, the rest of the empire didn’t follow suit overnight. Instead, the new religion was adopted over a period of decades.
Testing stone axes
Archaeology isn’t always about looking at old stuff.
A team of Japanese archaeologists put ancient tools found in Asia and Australia to the test by making 75 hand-held stone axes like those wielded by ancient humans 30,000–60,000 years ago.
They then tried to fell trees, split wood, scraping wood, bone and antlers, and adzing – cutting away the surface. The tools were observed after hundreds or thousands of strokes to see what the wear and tear was like on them.
Origins of Stonehenge: Scotland?
New evidence suggests that the 6-tonne Altar Stone at Stonehenge was transported from 750km away in Scotland.
Many of Stonehenge’s stones come from far away.
The largest sarsen stones – weighing up to 30 tonnes – are believed to have been transported from southwest England’s Marlborough Downs, about 32km from the site. Smaller 10-tonne stones are thought to have come from the Welsh Preseli Hills, more than 200km away.
Finding that the Altar Stone came all the way from Scotland only adds to the mystery of how and why ancient Britons about 5,000 years ago made Stonehenge.
Assumptions about Pompeii’s bodies are wrong
DNA analysis of people preserved after the eruption of Mt Vesuvius at Pompeii has disproven traditional ideas of the victims’ identities and relationships.
The people were killed near the modern Italian town of Naples, in 79 CE. Volcanic ash compacted around the bodies of the dying preserved their outlines. More than 100 bodies have been preserved at Pompeii.
Archaeologists initially made assumptions about the people based on their physical appearance and positioning. The DNA tests show that many of these assumptions were false.
For example, an adult wearing a golden bracelet and holding a child was previously thought to be mother and child. The genetic testing shows they were a child and an unrelated male.
When humans first made it to the Pacific and Australia
Archaeologists have found the oldest evidence of humans spreading through Pacific islands.
Tree resin artefacts dating to 55,000–50,000 years ago were found in Mololo Cave on Waigeo Island off the coast of New Guinea in Indonesia’s Southwest Papua province.
The discovery adds to the hotly debated subject of when humans first arrived in Australia, with estimates ranging from 65,000 to 47,000 years ago.
