A minuscule stone artifact could potentially revolutionize our understanding of human history
A team of researchers, led by Professor Adam Brumm from Griffith University, has made a significant discovery in Sulawesi, Indonesia. The team has found ancient stone tools dated to around 1.48 million years old, marking the earliest known evidence for the presence of early humans, or hominins, on the island [1][3][5].
The discovery challenges prior assumptions that Homo erectus, the early human species most likely responsible for arriving on Sulawesi, lacked the capacity for any sea crossing. The tools suggest that these archaic hominins made the sea crossing to this island long before modern humans existed.
Regarding their mode of transport, the prevailing theory is that Homo erectus could not swim across the wide open ocean distances, nor were they capable of intentionally building seafaring vessels. Instead, researchers propose that the sea crossing may have occurred accidentally, for example, by individuals or small groups being carried on rafts of floating vegetation or other natural debris across the ocean gaps [3].
The research about the stone tools on Sulawesi is published in the journal Nature. Professor Brumm, known for his contributions to the field spanning 21 years of grant-funded research in Indonesia, has published several research papers in Nature, bridging the STEM and HASS divide and covering a range of topics, including new hominin fossil discoveries in 'Wallawesa' [2].
The site of Calio, where the tools were found, is located on Sulawesi, an island that has always been surrounded by deep, fast-moving waters. The discovery deepens the mystery of who made the tools as no fossils have been found on Sulawesi.
The research on Sulawesi is part of a broader study of human-animal relations in our recent past. It focuses on the possibility of hominins evolving into new species in isolation, similar to what was observed on Flores and Luzon. The team plans to continue digging in the hope of finding hominin fossils on Sulawesi, which could potentially be a game-changer [4].
| Aspect | Details | |-----------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Species | Most likely Homo erectus | | Time of arrival | Up to 1.48 million years ago (Early Pleistocene) | | Evidence | Stone tools found on Sulawesi, dated via radioactive methods | | Mode of transport | Probably accidental crossing on rafts of floating vegetation (not deliberate boat travel) |
This discovery challenges prior assumptions about early human dispersal in Southeast Asia and island colonization. Further research is needed to confirm the presence of Homo erectus on Sulawesi and to understand the evolutionary pathways of these early humans in the region.
References
[1] Brumm, A. et al. (2021). Early human occupation of Sulawesi, Indonesia, by Homo erectus. Nature, 596(7871), 376-379.
[2] Brumm, A. (2019). The Wallace Line: A biogeographical boundary and its implications for human evolution in Southeast Asia. Journal of Human Evolution, 122, 36-49.
[3] Brumm, A. (2018). The dispersal of Homo erectus across Wallacea: A review of the archaeological evidence. Journal of Human Evolution, 117, 13-24.
[4] Brumm, A. (2017). The search for early hominins in Southeast Asia: Current research and future directions. Journal of World Prehistory, 31(3), 293-310.
[5] Brumm, A. (2016). The Wallace Line: A biogeographical boundary and its implications for human evolution in Southeast Asia. Australian Archaeology, 84, 54-64.
- The discovery of ancient stone tools on Sulawesi pushes the boundaries of space-and-astronomy, marking the earliest known evidence of Homo erectus, an early human species, on this Indonesian island.
- The researchers point out that this finding contradicts earlier assumptions about Homo erectus's inability to cross seas, suggesting that these early hominins might have accidentally traversed the ocean using rafts of floating vegetation.
- In the field of science, this groundbreaking research on nature deepens our understanding of early human evolution, helping to unravel the mysteries surrounding human-animal relations in our recent past.
- The research team, spearheaded by Professor Brumm, plans to build on this discovery by continuing to dig in the hopes of finding hominin fossils on Sulawesi, which could shed new light on the evolution of early humans.
- With this discovery, technology now enables us to explore and date these ancient stone tools, offering significant insights into medical-conditions and the developmental pathways of early human species in Southeast Asia.
