News Archaeology

Human ancestors made the oldest known bone tools 1.5 million years ago

A set of tools found in Tanzania were fashioned from the bones of hippos and elephants

A close-up view of gloved hands examining marks on a roughly-shaped animal bone tool

A researcher examines edge damage on a 1.5-million-year-old bone tool found in Africa, part of the oldest known set of such implements.

CSIC

By Bruce Bower

Ancient human relatives crafted sharp-edged tools out of animal bones around 1.5 million years ago, researchers say.

Discoveries at Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge, a famous East African fossil location, represent the oldest known evidence of systematic bone tool production by hominids, according to archaeologist Ignacio de la Torre of CSIC-Spanish National Research Council in Madrid and colleagues.