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Early Copper Crafting Among Anatolia's Last Hunter-Gatherers

Anthropology.net

Credit: Gre Fılla Excavation / Özlem Ekinbaş Can The Gre Fılla Site: A Window into Prehistoric Innovation Nestled in the upper Tigris Valley, Gre Fılla has been under excavation since 2018. ​ One particularly intriguing artifact, a copper bar-shaped object, underwent lead isotope analysis. .​

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When Did Humans Start Talking? Genomic Evidence Pushes Language Back to 135,000 Years Ago

Anthropology.net

Traditionally, scholars have debated linguistic origins based on indirect clues—symbolic artifacts, brain size, or the complexity of tool-making. Fossils do not speak, and ancient DNA does not carry recordings of conversations. C., & Chomsky, N. Why Only Us: Language and Evolution. Dediu, D., & Levinson, S.

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Ancient Craftsmanship: How Early North Americans Used Bone Needles to Survive Cold Climates

Anthropology.net

However, recent excavations led by the University of Wyoming's Todd Surovell and Wyoming State Archaeologist Spencer Pelton have revealed additional artifacts that deepen our understanding of life at this site, including the oldest known bead in the Americas, made from a hare bone. Source: Wiley: Prehistoric North America , 2018.

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Ancient Meteors and Early Iron: How Space Rocks Became Everyday Tools in Iron Age Poland

Anthropology.net

Recent analysis of artifacts from two Lusatian Culture cemeteries suggests that early metallurgists were not only working with iron from terrestrial sources but also incorporating metal from ataxite meteorites—an extremely rare form of nickel-rich iron that originates in space. A Witnessed Meteorite Fall?

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A Solar Plea: The Mystery of Bornholm’s Engraved Sun Stones

Anthropology.net

Researchers led by Rune Iversen from the University of Copenhagen have pieced together evidence that connects these enigmatic artifacts to a period of climate upheaval. The Stones of Bornholm Between 2013 and 2018, archaeologists excavated over 600 intricately carved stones from ritual sites on Bornholm.

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Two Worlds, Two Technologies: The Divergent Stone Industries of the Uluzzian and Châtelperronian Peoples

Anthropology.net

To correct this, the team organized a workshop where archaeologists directly examined artifacts from both traditions side by side. Only by directly comparing artifacts across different regions and traditions can we begin to piece together the true story of how human culture evolved in the shadow of extinction. DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2024.107012

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East Meets West: Avar Society’s Genetic Patchwork in Early Medieval Austria

Anthropology.net

The graves, filled with artifacts like ornate belt fittings and everyday items, reflected a shared culture. Two Communities, Two Genetic Legacies At first glance, the burial sites of Mödling and Leobersdorf, located just south of Vienna, seemed remarkably similar. But ancient DNA analysis told a different story.