Archaeologists might have just discovered the world’s earliest known human cremation in the Afar Rift, Ethiopia—dating back 60,000 years older than the previous record-holder!

Previously, the oldest cremated human remains were thought to have come from Lake Mungo, Australia, dating back 40,000 years, suggesting just how groundbreaking the Afar Rift discovery is. For context, even the earliest intentional burial ever found is only 78,000 years old, further cementing the importance of this new research.

Geologically, the Afar Rift holds exceptional significance as it is the exact point where three tectonic plates are slowly splitting the continent in two. It is one of the few places on the planet where an oceanic ridge can be observed on land, and it is famous for yielding some of the oldest hominin remains, including “Lucy.”

For 45 years, a renowned, long-running multidisciplinary paleoanthropological research initiative known as the Middle Awash Project has explored deposits in an area of the Afar Rift called the Halibee member of the Dawaitoli Formation.

Launched in 1981 under J. Desmond Clark and Tim White, the project has yielded monumental discoveries in human evolution within one of the hottest and driest places on Earth—a stunning yet harsh landscape filled with inhospitable boiling geysers and sulfur springs.

The latest findings have been published in PNAS, with an enduring mission to uncover how early Homo sapiens “interacted with their environment,” which, given the controversy over the damage humans have caused the planet, sounds like an invitation to reflect on how we interact with our own environment during a volatile state of change. This shift is unavoidable from a geological standpoint, as Africa may one day split into two continents.

A snapshot of humans 100,000 years ago

The profound significance of the location and research continues to grow, as the most recent discoveries were deemed “exceptional” because they were left undisturbed, offering an untouched snapshot of both the landscape and the humans who roamed across it. Much of what academia knows comes from “thin cave deposits,” according to Phys.org, so open-air evidence from this period in human history is exceedingly rare, having been preserved and protected by the arid, remote conditions.

The water that flowed through the landscape 100,000 years ago shaped human behavior and spawned innovation.

The thousands of stone tools found onsite indicated to archaeologists that these humans continued to return to this deposit for short periods of time when the plain flooded. The stone and rare obsidian objects made of volcanic glass, Phys.org continued, originated from distant regions. This is a sign that humans were actively traveling across great distances. Based on the three thousand animal fossils discovered, they might have crossed paths or shared space with monkeys, rodents, and large mammals.

A message about water

Globally, this research helps archaeologists and anthropologists “build a comprehensive understanding of how early Homo sapiens interacted with their environment. Our findings suggest that local water-related factors and changes were more decisive than global climate variations,” says Ferhat Kaya, an archaeologist on the project, as quoted in Phys.org.

The flood cycles of the Awash River impacted the early humans living in the area more than global climate fluctuations did. This suggests that we are deeply impacted by our local environment and driven to seek water above all else – a timely reminder, as global water resources today face severe risks, with four billion people experiencing scarcity for at least one month each year.

This is yet another example of how archaeology always seems to turn up with a message for our modern age to consider.

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