Study: Early Humans Frequented Sites Where Tool, Food Sources Met  

Archaeologists from Tel Aviv University have discovered that Paleolithic stone quarrying and tool-making sites were visited again and again by early humans because they adhered to the migration routes of elephants, a key food source. 

The research was led by Dr. Meir Finkel and Prof. Ran Barkai of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures and took place at tool-making sites in the Upper Galilee region of northern Israel.

Early humans needed water, food and stone to survive, explained Barkai. Stone was used to hunt and butcher animals, and elephants were the primary dietary component for these early humans. 

The researchers cross-referenced databases of the sites and elephant migration paths, and then used the findings to examine Paleolithic sites in Africa, Asia and Europe. These included sites where early humans first hunted elephants and mammoths and later on other animals such as hippos, camels and horses. 

“It appears that the Paleolithic holy trinity holds true universally: Wherever there was water, there were elephants, and wherever there were elephants, humans had to find suitable rock outcrops to quarry stone and make tools in order to hunt and butcher their favorite mega herbivores,” said Barkai.

“It was a tradition: for hundreds of thousands of years the elephants wandered along the same route, while humans produced stone tools nearby. Ultimately, those elephants became extinct, and the world changed forever.”
The study was published in the journal Archaeologies.