The following table attempts to list the oldest-known Paleolithic and Paleo-Indian sites where hominin tools have been found. It includes sites where compelling evidence of hominin tool use has been found, even if no actual tools have been found. Stone tools preserve more readily than tools of many other materials, making them more abundant than tools made from other materials. In some cases, it may be possible that these stone tools were once accompanied by, or even preceded by non-stone tools that have been lost to time. Similarly, hard materials like bone or shell are more likely than softer materials to leave discernible cut marks on bone. Bamboo has been shown to leave cut marks on bone that are harder to see than cut marks by stone, so the earliest evidence of tool use that is likely to be found is often cut marks made on bone by stone or shell tools. Therefore, it should not be assumed that the items on this list represent the earliest uses of tools in each area, but rather the earliest uses of tools that have been found. Because this list focuses on only the earliest evidence of tools, and due to bias towards evidence of stone tools because of its increased likelihood of preservation, this page necessarily omits mention of many significant ancient tools made from non-stone materials because those cases are not among the earliest found within their geographic area. See Timeline of historic inventions for other noteworthy tools and inventions. This list excludes tools and tool use attributed to non-hominin species. This list is non-exhaustive and only lists the 6 or fewer top candidates for oldest tool site within each significant geographic area.
Geographic areas covered Africa East Africa North Africa Southern Africa West Africa Americas North America South America Asia East Asia Island Southeast Asia - Islands between Sunda Shelf and Sahul, not connected to either one during the Last Glacial Maximum South Asia Sunda Shelf West Asia Europe Eastern Europe Western Europe Sahul - Australia and New Guinea Indian Ocean For much of the 20th century, a "Clovis first" idea dominated American archeology. Many sites with dates too old to be compatible with "Clovis first" were published, but these were mostly dismissed under the hegemony of "Clovis first." Meanwhile, some indigenous archeologists insisted throughout the "Clovis first" era that the peopling of the Americas was much older than Clovis. Recent publications with very strong evidence for pre-Clovis sites seem to have ended the hegemony of "Clovis first."
List of tools
See also Hominini List of human evolution fossils Stone Age Stone tool Timeline of historic inventions Tool use by non-humans
References