The world ’s oldest mine has been discovered in southern Africa by barrage ancient materials with neutron inside the nuclear reactor gist . Dated at around 48,000 years old , the mine testify the colossal amount of meaning that prehistoric humans placed on ochre .
Ochre might be one of themost authoritative materialsin human story . It ’s a natural clay paint that ’s rich in iron compounds , endowing it with a stove of colour from deep chickenhearted and vibrant orangeness to lineage violent and out of practice brown .
The pigment has been used by humans for century of grand of long time for a variety of functions , such ascave painting , body art , personal ornaments , and rituals . Beyond its aesthetic appealingness , ochre has antibacterial property , which might have made it utile for medicative role as well .
Brandi L. MacDonald collects ochre and clay raw materials in Eswatini, southern Africa, for the study.Image credit: Brandi L. MacDonald, Gregor Bader, and Jörg Linstädter
To derive a deeper understanding of the fabric ’s history in Stone Age Africa , researchers used a variety of scientific techniques to analyze ochre samples taken from Lion Cavern and surrounding communities in Eswatini , a landlocked body politic in Southern Africa .
Using optically stimulated luminescence , a technique that dates fabric by valuate radiation sickness to determine the last clip mineral grains were exposed to sunlight , the researcher found that ochre had been mined from Lion Cavern in “ large quantities ” at least 48,000 years ago .
People appear to have return to the surrounding region for ochre mining for 1000 of years , indicate the quality of the material was an of import part of the traditions and share cognition that were passed down for generations .
The team used another proficiency called neutron activation psychoanalysis to identify the chemic theme of the artifacts and track their provenance .
“ We take humble samples of ochre artefact and safely make them radioactive by exposing them to neutrons inside the nuclear reactor core , ” Brandi L. MacDonald , a chemical science professor in the College of Arts and Science at the University of Missouri , say in astatement .
“ As these radioactive material start to break down or decay , they let loose characteristic energies in the form of radioisotope — which we can measure using da Gamma - beam spectrometry , ” said MacDonald .
The chemical snooping revealed that the ochre in this part of southern Africa had been enthrall across significant distance , suggesting a considerable level of organization and trade networks .
Above all , the research emphasize that ocher held deep cultural and practical value for people in Stone Age Eswatini , illuminating how this natural paint played a central role in thestory of humans .
“ By comparing the ochre origin with the spot where citizenry live , exchanged , and used those ochres between 2,000 and 40,000 geezerhood ago , we can see how their choice of raw materials changed over long point of time , ” MacDonald excuse .
“ This allows us to anchor human activities in metre and show how human knowledge and social networks developed alongside those activity . sympathise how these the great unwashed mined , processed , ravish , and used ochre provides cue about early technological innovations and helps follow the history of human creativeness and symbolism , ” she said .
The cogitation is published in the journalNature Communications .
