Scientists: We've Found the Oldest Wooden Tools Ever

Two artifacts found at a lake shore in Greece are the oldest wooden tools ever uncovered, dating back 430,000 years. One is a spindly stick about 2 1/2 feet long that could've been used for digging in the mud, per the AP. The other is a smaller, more mysterious handheld chunk of willow or poplar wood that may have been used to shape stone tools, according to research published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers think ancient humans wielded a whole litany of tools made from stone, bone, and wood, but it's particularly difficult to find evidence of wooden tools today because wood rots so quickly. Such tools are only preserved in specific environments, like in ice, caves, or underwater.

The newest tools, found in Greece's Megalopolis basin, were possibly buried quickly by sediment and preserved by a wet environment over time. For years, researchers have found other remnants at the site, including stone tools and elephant bones with cuts on them. While scientists didn't directly date the wooden tools, the site is about 430,000 years old, which provides insight into the objects' age. "I've always just been thrilled to be able to touch these objects," says study author Annemieke Milks of the University of Reading. Human remains haven't been found at the site yet, so it's not yet clear who used the tools. The owners could have been Neanderthals, early human ancestors, or someone else.

The Greek site likely has more gems from the past waiting to be found, says archaeologist Jarod Hutson with the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, who wasn't involved with the study. But the unassuming appearance of these two new tools makes them harder to interpret. "It's difficult to get excited about these because they don't strike you immediately as wooden tools. And we don't know what they were used for," says Hutson.

Other examples of ancient wooden tools include a set of spears from Germany and 300,000-year-old Chinese digging sticks that may have been used to harvest plants. The new find offers a rare look into the varied collection of tools used to survive—a glimpse at a "little known aspect of the technology of early humans," says study author Katerina Harvati of the University of Tuebingen.