Archaeologists have found children's fingerprints in 15,000-year-old clay
Archaeologists have discovered clay jewellery in the Middle East, some 15,000 years old, created by children. Fingerprints have been preserved on their surface. The discovery shows that people were using clay to express themselves long before pottery and agriculture existed.
Scientists have found 142 clay ornaments - beads and pendants - at several archaeological sites in the region of present-day Israel.
They belong to the Natufian culture, one of the first people to live sedentary lives, even before the advent of agriculture.
It was previously thought that clay was hardly ever used for jewellery during this period. In fact, only a few such finds were known before this discovery.
However, the new study has shown: this was not an accident, but a steady practice.
Details
The jewellery was made from unfired clay, giving them different shapes, from discs to cylinders. Many were covered with red ochre, one of the earliest examples of this technique.
A particularly important find was the fingerprints preserved on the surface.
In total, the researchers identified about 50 prints - and they belonged to people of different ages, including children.
Some objects, judging by their size, could have been made especially for a child - for example, a tiny ring with a diameter of about one centimetre.
This suggests that jewellery making was a communal activity involving both adults and children.
The shape of many beads repeats plants - cereals, legumes, seeds. These were important elements of everyday life of people of that time.
Scientists believe that such objects served not only as jewellery, but also as a way of expressing:
- group membership
- social role
- cultural symbols
Why it's important
The discovery changes the way we think about the development of human culture:
- people began using clay for symbolic purposes much earlier
- creative activities included children
- elements of culture and learning were passed on through shared activities
It shows that important social and cultural changes began before agriculture.
Background
The Natufian culture existed about 15,000 years ago and is considered a transitional phase between nomadic lifestyles and the first settlements.
Source
The new study is published in the journal Science Advances and is based on an analysis of finds from several archaeological sites.