World's oldest sewn clothing may be stitched Ice Age hide from Oregon cave

Researchers dated sewn hide, cords and bone needles from Oregon caves to about 12,600–11,880 years ago and report the stitched hides may be fragments of clothing or footwear from the Younger Dryas.

A new study reports that stitched animal hide fragments recovered from Oregon caves may represent the world's oldest known sewn clothing. The research, published Feb. 4 in Science Advances, used radiocarbon dating to place these artifacts in the Younger Dryas cooling interval roughly 12,600–11,880 years ago. The items were part of collections from Cougar Mountain Cave and the Paisley Caves and include sewn hide, braided cords and bone needles. Authors describe the assemblage as evidence of complex perishable technology used for warmth and as a form of social expression. Known details: - Radiocarbon dating places the sewn hide in the range of about 12,600 to 11,880 years ago, within the Younger Dryas period. - Three sewn animal hide fragments were processed and dehaired; chemical analysis indicates the hides came from North American elk (Cervus canadensis). - The assemblage includes 37 fiber cords (braided from sagebrush, dogbane, juniper and bitterbrush), 15 wooden implements, and three sewn hides. Researchers also examined 14 eyed and three eyeless bone needles found at these and nearby sites. - Artifacts originated from multiple sites in Oregon and Nevada, including Cougar Mountain Cave, the Paisley Caves, the Connley Caves and the Tule Lake Rockshelter; such non-bone plant and animal technology from the Late Pleistocene is rare in the Western Hemisphere. - The authors note the presence of fine-eyed needles and ornament items, and write that clothing likely served both practical and social roles. Summary: The dated finds indicate Indigenous peoples in what is now North America used sewn perishable technologies to cope with Late Pleistocene cold and to express identity. The authors report eyed bone needles disappear from the local record after about 11,700 years ago, a change that corresponds with post–Younger Dryas warming. Undetermined at this time.