Wooden tools dated to 430,000 years found at Greek site

Researchers reported two hand-held wooden artifacts from the Megalopolis Basin in Marathousa, Greece, which they date to about 430,000 years ago; one is from an alder trunk and may have been used for digging while the other, made of willow or poplar, may have been used to shape stone.

Researchers have uncovered hand-held wooden tools they date to about 430,000 years ago at the Megalopolis Basin near Marathousa, Greece. One artifact comes from an alder trunk and may have been used for digging. A smaller willow or poplar piece may have been used to shape stones. The site was once a lakeshore and has previously yielded stone and bone artifacts and animal remains, and exceptional preservation kept delicate organic material intact. Key facts: - The finds were excavated at Marathousa in the Megalopolis Basin, roughly 100 miles southwest of Athens. - Two wooden artifacts were identified: an alder-trunk piece interpreted as possibly for digging, and a very small willow or poplar object that may have been used to work stone. - Researchers report human modification based on specific marks made by stone tools on the wood. - Dating relied on sediments and rocks from the archaeological layers because direct dating of wood is limited to about 50,000 years; the team concludes an age of about 430,000 years. - Preservation is attributed to rapid burial in wet sediment; the site has also preserved seeds, leaves, stone and bone tools, and animal remains. Summary: The discovery extends the documented use of hand-held wooden tools into the Middle Pleistocene and records a previously unreported small wooden tool type. Undetermined at this time.