People have been acting like people-in other words, they've been making tools, creating ceremonies, and sharing food—for a long time. That's the conclusion of a recent study from South Africa's southern coast.
There, in a cave lying above the sea, researchers from Arizona State University have found evidence that humans were behaving in surprisingly complex ways as early as 164,000 years ago. Our species. Homo sapiens, appeared an estimated 200,000 years ago.
The cave held three important evidences about the behavior of these Stone Age people.
First, the researchers found the remains of all kinds of shellfish. The people who lived in the cave probably collected these creatures from rocky shores and tide pools and brought them to the cave to eat.
The researchers consider the early Africans move to the South African coast between 195,000 and 130,000 years ago. Around that time, the climate inland turned relatively cold and dry. Therefore, there were fewer plants and animals to eat away from the coast.
When these ancient people moved to the coast, they probably experienced a major cultural shift, the researchers suspect. That's because observations of modem hunter-gatherer societies suggest that men are more likely to hunt for big animals when people live inland. On the coast, women play a more important role in providing food by gathering plants and shellfish.
As for the second clue, the researchers unearthed 57 pieces of reddish pigment (颜料). The researchers think that the cave habitants used the paint for coloring their bodies or for other ceremonies. Symbolic behavior is a clearly human feature.
Finally, the search discovered over 1,800 stone tools, including well crafted blades (刀片). These blades came in various sizes. The smallest were just less than a half inch wide. Ancient people may have attached these blades to the end of a stick to make spears or other tools.
