Chinese archeologists have dug up fresh clues about early humans – and stunning new insights
- Researchers in southwestern China uncover dramatic new evidence about paleolithic people, turning back the clock on a key moment in prehistory
- Insights about diet, abilities and beliefs could ‘upend’ our understanding about how Old Stone Age people lived
As the waters began to recede from a flash flood on a river in southwestern China in 2021, few could have predicted how such a rare weather event would illuminate the region’s distant past – and the lives of some of its earliest palaeolithic human inhabitants.
The Mengxi River site in Sichuan province has since revealed clues about how people lived 50,000 to 70,000 years ago, a key moment in the study of the origin and spread of modern humans.
It seems the ancient riverside hunting settlement was a thriving hive of activity. Scientists have unearthed a trove of tools, animal fossils and plant remains. But signs of ancient carvings and cuttings, as well as the use of fire point to the wisdom and specialisation of the site’s residents.
“They lived by a small river, surrounded by ancient forests with towering trees, that were home to elephants, rhinos, deer and other animals,” Wang Youping, a professor of the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University, told local outlet Sichuan Online.
“Tens of thousands of years have gone by. Mighty trees fell, leaving behind countless branches and trunks, while animals turned into fragments of fossils,” he said.