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Archaeologists in Oregon have discovered fossilized animal hide scraps dating back to the Ice Age -- and could be the oldest sewn clothing in humanity.
Rosencrance et al., Sci. Adv. 12, eaec2916
A stitch in time.
Archaeologists have discovered 12,000-year-old animal hide scraps that could be humanity’s oldest known sewn clothing, per a primeval study in the journal Science Advances.
Discovered in the Cougar Mountain Cave in Oregon, the two strips of Elk hailed from the Late Pleistocene era toward the end of the ice age, between 12,060 to 12,620 years ago, Oregon Live reported. This means that early inhabitants of North America had advanced seamstress skills long before the construction of the Egyptian pyramids between 1,700 and 2,700 BC.
The alleged prehistoric couture was bound together with chord erected from animal hide, as confirmed by radiocarbon dating and taxonomic identification.
Researchers speculated that it could have been sewn together with bone needles, which were also found at the site, along with suspected animal traps, Phys.org reported.
They could not definitely confirm whether the primeval patchwork was indeed clothing, noting that it could have been part of a bag or a shelter.
However, if the items were fossilized fashion, this deer skin would be the “oldest known physical remains of sewn hide” and the first ever clothing dating back to the Pleistocene.
More importantly, the find sheds light on how our ancient ancestors coped during the epoch, known as the Younger Dryas, which was defined by global cooling.
“By 45,000 years ago, modern humans became the only hominins to live permanently above 45°N latitude,” the researchers wrote.
They noted that the extreme temps and scarce resources made survival impossible without the assistance of “thermoregulatory and complex food-acquisition technologies.”
Sewing with bone needles would’ve allowed the indigenous people to create the tight-fitting fashion necessary for surviving the frigid conditions, per the study.
Unlike rudimentary animal hides, which didn’t prevent hypothermia, this stitched-outwear insulated against the cold sans inhibiting movement.
Coincidentally, while prevalent during the Pleistocene, bone needles weren’t as common later on, when temperatures warmed.
Ultimately, the study illuminates “the role of clothing in human cultural evolution,” the researchers wrote.
“While the origin of clothing is tied directly to the physiological limitations of the human body, its function as a social and cultural mechanism is also critical to the history of humanity.”
English (US)