Recent geochemical analysis of 780,000-year-old stone tools discovered in Israel provides insights into the sophisticated tool-making practices of Ashurian (or Acheulean) humans. These early humans strategically sought specific basalt sources, highlighting their advanced planning and in-depth understanding of their environment.
Basalt slabs from the Ashurian site of Gesher Benot Ya’akov, utilized for bifacial production, show evidence of off-site knapping. Image credit: Chuang Zhao.
Dr. Zahi Golan from the Israel Geological Survey emphasized, “Acquiring suitable raw materials was essential for prehistoric peoples, significantly impacting their tool-making processes.”
“The selection of raw materials offers a window into the behavioral aspects of prehistoric cultures, revealing their environmental knowledge, which has facilitated tool production for over three million years.”
Research indicates two significant trends during the Early and Early Middle Pleistocene: increasing variability in raw materials at more recent sites and the exploitation of nearby resources. These trends are evidenced by studies of Oldowan and Acheulean tools, suggesting that early hominins’ material preferences evolved over time.
In recent studies, archaeologists analyzed basalt artifacts from the Ashurian site of Gesher Benot Yaakov and a nearby basalt source to trace the origins of tools and understand how early humans navigated their changing landscape.
“Dating back approximately 780,000 years, this evidence highlights the repeated habitation by Atyur hominins along the banks of Paleo-Fura Lake,” the researchers noted.
“Excavations have revealed a wealth of archaeological finds, including stone tools crafted from flint, limestone, and basalt, alongside indications of fire use, plant exploitation, animal processing, and fish consumption.”
“Basalt played a crucial role as a raw material, particularly for producing large cutting tools such as axes and kitchen knives.”
“Prior studies suggest that tool manufacture involved a complex reduction process. Humans selected sizable basalt slabs, formed them into substantial cores, removed large flakes, and fashioned these into bifacial tools.”
“This intricate process demanded careful planning, technical skills, and a thorough understanding of basalt properties.”
Researchers conducted a chemical analysis of basalt artifacts from various archaeological layers, comparing them against samples from the surrounding geological basalt flows.
Additionally, they analyzed basalt from the Eshel Yaakov borehole at the Gesher Benot Yaakov site.
The findings reveal that many investigated basalt artifacts match sources located within approximately 1 km of the site, with some originating from basalt strata now buried beneath the surface.
By integrating geochemical fingerprinting with borehole data, scientists reconstructed parts of the ancient landscape that have since vanished.
This methodology enabled the identification of basalt flows once accessible to humans 780,000 years ago but now obscured by erosion or tectonic shifts.
“This is particularly significant as Gesher Benot Yaakov is situated in an area of active tectonic activity along the Dead Sea fault line,” researchers remarked.
“Erosion, sediment burial, and subsidence have continually transformed the local landscape.”
“Basalt flows that were once within reach of early humans may have become buried or eroded over time.”
The geochemical analysis also uncovered variations between tool types. While large cores are predominantly linked to local basalt sources, specific cleavers seemed to originate from sources not included in the analyzed samples.
“This indicates that early humans did not merely select available basalts but actively chose specific sources based on their technical requirements, including the size, shape, internal structure of the slabs, and their suitability for knife production,” the authors stated.
Differences in tool types were evident, with some knives sourced from distinct basalt deposits when compared to the dominant materials used for hand axes and large cores.
This finding is important, as previous research indicates that producing kitchen knives necessitates a high level of planning and technical skill.
This suggests that humans were selectively searching for basalts with specific characteristics optimal for certain tools.
The same selective material sourcing strategies appear across multiple archaeological layers, indicating a persistent technological tradition spanning thousands of years.
“These findings imply that Ature hominins at Gesher Benot Yaakov possessed extensive environmental knowledge that was preserved and transmitted through generations,” the researchers concluded.
Find their study published on May 14 in Scientific Reports.
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T. Golan et al. Geochemical basalt investigation sheds light on sourcing strategies at the Ashurian site of Gesher Benot Ya’akov, Dead Sea Transform, Israel. Scientific Reports published online on May 14, 2026. doi: 10.1038/s41598-026-51905-0
Source: www.sci.news
