Ancient Ice Age civilizations constructed elaborate fireplaces primarily fueled by wood burning

Archaeologists discovered and analyzed three hearths at the Upper Paleolithic site of Korman ‘9 (45,000-10,000 years ago) on the right bank of the Dniester River in Ukraine. Their findings show that ice age humans built different types of hearths, using mostly wood, but perhaps using bones and fat to burn fire.

It is widely assumed that an important tool for human survival, especially in cold weather, is the ability to create, maintain and use fires.

Many literature provides data on the benefits of fire use regarding human evolution and its fundamental function in everyday life.

More recent research also shows the labor-intensive nature of using fireworks. The implication of fire use was not only an essential survival tool, but also played an important role in the way hunter-gatherer groups organize themselves.

This includes how hunter-gatherers acquire resources such as wooden fuel, how to initiate and maintain a fire if they store or cache fuel materials for future use, or how sites and activities are organized around the combustion function.

“The fire didn’t just keep it warm. It was also essential for cooking, making tools and social gatherings,” said Dr. Philip R. Nigust, an archaeologist at the University of Vienna.

“We know that fires have spread around this period, but there is little evidence from the height of the ice age,” added Dr. William Murfrey, an archaeologist at the University of Algarve.

In the current study, the researchers focused on the archaeological site of Komann 9 in Ukraine.

“Korman ‘9 is an Upper Paleolithic site on a north facing terrace on the right bank of the Dniester River in Ukraine,” they said.

“This site was discovered in 2012 while researching a site along the Dniester River.”

Through microstratigraphic analysis, microtransfer and colorimetric analysis, scientists have identified three flat wood furnaces.

One interesting discovery to come is that these fires have reached temperatures above 600 degrees Celsius, demonstrating a sophisticated mastery of fireworks even in the face of extreme environmental stresses.

The analysis also shows that humans use wood as the main fuel during peak ice ages, and charcoal analysis indicates spruce wood. However, other fuels such as bones and fat may be used.

“Some of the animal bones found on the site were burned in the fire at temperatures above 650 degrees Celsius,” said Dr. Majolaine D. Bosch, a museum of the University of Vienna zoo physician, Austrian Academy of Sciences and the Museum of Natural History.

“We are currently investigating whether they are being used as fuel or if they were accidentally burned.”

All three fireplaces are open and flat. However, the new results suggest that fire use was refined as it is likely that fireplaces were constructed and used in different ways each season.

One of the three fireplaces is large and thick, suggesting that a higher temperature was achieved here.

“People had full control over the fire and knew how to use it in a variety of ways depending on the purpose of the fire,” Dr. Nigust said.

“However, our results also show that these hunter-gatherers used the same location at different times of the year during their annual migration.”

Survey results Published in the journal Geography.

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William Chase Murfrey et al. 2025. The use of fires during the last Glacier largest era: evidence from the epigravet of Kolmann 9 in the Middle Donierster Valley in Ukraine. Geography 40(2): E70006; doi: 10.1002/gea.70006