Unbelievable: My Initial Reaction to This Incredible Sighting

Archaeologists have made an extraordinary discovery—a wooden structure that is believed to be the oldest in the world. This finding pushes back the history of woodworking by at least 175,000 years, long before our species even existed. The research team found these ancient pieces of wood in waterlogged sediment near Zambia’s Kalambo Falls, an area that has previously yielded wooden artifacts and stone tools. By using luminescence dating, a technique that determines when sediments were last exposed to sunlight or heat through trace radioactive isotopes, archaeologists concluded that a cut log and a tapered piece of wood were 324,000 years old, a digging stick was 390,000 years old, and a wedge and two interlocking logs were a staggering 476,000 years old, according to Live Science.

The archaeologists also discovered evidence that stone tools were used to create a U-shaped notch, allowing one log to rest on top of the other at a 75-degree angle. “When I first saw it, I thought this can’t be real,” said Larry Barham, an archaeologist from the University of Liverpool and the lead author of a study published in Nature. Barham expressed his surprise to The Guardian, stating that there are no similar structures from the African or Eurasian Paleolithic era, which spans millions of years up until approximately 12,000 years ago. The researchers propose that this wooden structure was part of a raised platform, walkway, or foundation for dwellings in a periodically wet floodplain. It is astonishing to think that Homo sapiens, our species, did not emerge until 300,000 years ago, while Homo heidelbergensis, who roamed the region nearly 500,000 years ago, may have been responsible for this remarkable construction.

This discovery challenges the previous belief that early humans were simple foragers with limited technological abilities. “The wood and the stone suggest a high level of ingenuity, technological skill, and planning,” said Barham. Additionally, Annemieke Milks, an archaeologist from the University of Reading who was not involved in the study, remarked on the significance of the preservation of wood, stating that such behaviors were likely more widespread than what is evident in the archaeological record. The researchers also found other intriguing wooden artifacts, including a split branch with a notch that may have been part of a trap, and a log cut at both ends that could have served as a work surface. Barham is currently working towards having Kalambo Falls designated as a UNESCO world heritage site. (Read more discoveries stories.)