LUSAKA: Archaeologists have found a wooden structure believed to be almost half a million years old in Zambia, Western media reported on Wednesday.
It is said that the discovery on the banks of a river in Zambia has changed the understanding of ancient human civilization.
Stone-age people-built shelters
According to the findings published in the journal ‘Nature’, stone-age people might have built shelters.
Archaeologist Professor Larry Barham said the discovery has changed his thought about early human life.
The University of Liverpool scientist led the Deep Roots of Humanity research project that found and analyzed the ancient pieces of wood.
Expert said the discovery could change the perception that ancient humans led nomadic lives. “They made something new, and large, from wood,” Prof Barham said.
He said ancient people used their intelligence, imagination and skills to create something they had never seen before.
The researchers also discovered ancient tools made of wood, including digging sticks. The analysis further said the wooden pieces were about 476,000 years old.
Till now, evidence for the human use of wood has been restricted to making fire and making tools such as digging sticks and spears.
