Scientists have uncovered the ancient wooden tools ever found, dating back 430,000 years, in a lake shore in Greece. The discovery, made at the Marathousa 1 site in the Megalopolis basin, sheds light on early human tool use in a time when wood rarely survives.
At a Glance
- Oldest wooden tools found, 430,000 years old
- Two pieces: a 2 ½-foot (80 centimeters) digging stick and a smaller willow or poplar fragment
- Site preserved by wet sediment, no human remains yet
Discovery and Context
The Marathousa 1 site lies along the shores of a lake in the Megalopolis basin, a region that has yielded numerous stone artifacts and faunal remains over the past decade. Excavations revealed a layer of fine sediment that had rapidly buried organic material, creating a natural “time capsule” that protected wood from decay. The site also contains stone tools and elephant bones bearing cut marks, indicating that early hominins were present and actively shaping their environment.
Scientists did not date the wooden pieces directly. Instead, they relied on the stratigraphic context of the site, which has been securely dated to 430,000 years ago through a combination of paleomagnetic and radiometric techniques. This age places the tools firmly in the Middle Pleistocene, a period when Neanderthals and early Homo species were thriving across Europe.
Tool Details
The first artifact is a slender stick approximately 2 ½-foot (80 centimeters) long. Its tapering shape and worn edges suggest it was used for digging in mud or soil, possibly to extract tubers or roots. The second artifact is a small, rounded chunk of wood, likely from willow or poplar, measuring only a few centimeters across. Microscopic wear patterns on the surface hint at contact with stone, leading researchers to propose that it may have served as a handle or shaping tool for crafting stone implements.
| Artifact | Approximate Size | Likely Material | Proposed Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stick | 2 ½-foot (80 cm) | Willow or poplar | Digging in mud |
| Chunk | ~5 cm | Willow or poplar | Handheld tool for shaping stone |
The preservation of these items is extraordinary. Wood normally decomposes within a few decades, but the waterlogged conditions at Marathousa 1 slowed bacterial activity and prevented oxidation. Similar preservation has been observed in ice cores, cave deposits, and ancient shipwrecks, but the Greek lake setting is a rare example of a terrestrial environment that can safeguard organic artifacts for hundreds of thousands of years.
Scientific Significance
The find expands the known repertoire of early human tools beyond stone, bone, and antler. “These objects give us a rare look into the varied collection of tools used to survive – a glimpse at a little known aspect of the technology of early humans,” said study author Katerina Harvati of the University of Tübingen. The discovery also corroborates earlier evidence of wooden implements in other parts of the world, such as spears from Germany and 300,000-year-old digging sticks from China.
“I’ve always just been thrilled to be able to touch these objects,” said Annemieke Milks, a researcher at the University of Reading who co-authored the study. The tactile experience provides a direct connection to the past that photographs and replicas cannot match.
The tools also raise questions about the cognitive and motor skills required to work with wood. Crafting a stick that could withstand repeated digging or shaping stone would have demanded an understanding of wood grain, durability, and ergonomics-skills that are often assumed to be exclusive to later periods.
Potential Users
Human remains have not yet been recovered from Marathousa 1, leaving the identity of the tool users uncertain. The site’s age suggests that Neanderthals or early Homo species could have been responsible, but the possibility of other hominin groups cannot be ruled out. Archaeologist Jarod Hutson of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History cautioned that “It’s difficult to get excited about these because they don’t strike you immediately as wooden tools. And we don’t know what they were used for,” indicating that further contextual evidence is needed to assign agency.
Future Research
Researchers plan to conduct detailed use-wear analyses on the wooden fragments, comparing them with modern analogs to refine hypotheses about their functions. Additionally, targeted excavations aim to uncover associated faunal remains that might clarify the diet and subsistence strategies of the site’s inhabitants. The discovery also encourages a re-examination of other lake shore sites in the Mediterranean for overlooked organic artifacts.
The Marathousa 1 find demonstrates that even in environments where preservation is rare, careful excavation can yield artifacts that reshape our understanding of early human technology. As more tools surface, scientists hope to build a more complete picture of how our ancestors interacted with the natural world during the Middle Pleistocene.
