World's earliest fish hooks discovered, 42,000 years old

by Jeni Bone on 29 Nov 2011 Archaeologists have discovered what they say are the world’s earliest known fish hooks which suggest humans started fishing in the open sea much earlier than previously thought.

Past studies have shown that early humans were capable of crossing the open ocean as far back as 50,000 years ago, such as they did to colonise Australia. But, until now evidence that such mariners could fish while in the open sea dated back only to 12,000 years ago.

A team of Australian archaeologists has found evidence of prehistoric fishing gear and the remains of large fish such as tuna at a cave shelter known as Jerimalai, located in the Southeast Asian island nation of East Timor, dating back 42,000 years.

The discovered fishing hooks are made from bone and have been declared the earliest definitive evidence of such tools in the world, according to Sue O'Connor, an archaeologist at Australian National University and leader of the research.

'It is possible that people caught the tuna in the deep channel that lies off the coast of the Jerimalai shelter,' she said.
The site, first uncovered in 2005, also included bone points, shell beads, the remains of fish, turtles, pythons, rodents, bats and birds, and nearly 10,000 stone artifacts.

The island of Timor has very few terrestrial animals overall and only small birds call the island home, perhaps explaining why the ancient people here pursued fishing, O'Connor said.

About half the fish remains at the site came from pelagic fish such as tuna, ones that dwell near the ocean's surface or deeper in the water.

Capturing such fast-moving fish needs a lot of planning and complex maritime technology, suggesting that early humans developed these skills earlier than previously thought, said the researchers who detailed their findings in the journal Science.