Researchers have discovered what may be the earliest evidence of cannibalism in a closely related species to humans. According to Independent, the earliest proof that early people murdered and consumed each other’s flesh was a fossilised leg bone with cut marks caused by stone tools.
Nine cut marks on a left shin bone belonging to modern human ancestors that was discovered in northern Kenya 1.45 million years ago were examined in the study, which was published on Monday in the journal Scientific Reports.
According to them, this could be the earliest known incidence of cannibalism in a human relative species with a high degree of certainty and precision.
In particular, Briana Pobiner, a palaeoanthropologist at the Smithsonian Institution, was combining through fossils in a Nairobi, Kenya, museum in search of hints about the ancient carnivores that devoured the ancestors of humans.
Dr. Pobiner observed what “looked to her like marks of butchery” and matched the samples to results from controlled tests.
The other nine markings were more akin to butchery marks discovered on animal fossils that appeared to have been hunted and consumed by humans and their ancestors, although there were two bite marks from a huge cat. She came to the conclusion that the cuts were similar to those formed by stone tools.
The cuts are situated where a calf muscle would have connected to the bone on the shin, which is an ideal location to make a cut if you want to remove a large piece of flesh, according to Dr. Pobiner. These cut marks resemble those I’ve seen on animal fossils being prepared for food quite a bit. It appears most likely that the flesh from this leg was consumed, and that it was consumed out of necessity rather than as part of a ritual, according to Dr. Pobiner.
Dr. Pobiner thinks this is the most likely explanation even if the cut scars by themselves do not prove that early humans dined on one another. She continued by stating that the discovery was “honestly shocking and very surprising, but very exciting.”
In particular, Briana Pobiner, a palaeoanthropologist at the Smithsonian Institution, was combining through fossils in a Nairobi, Kenya, museum in search of hints about the ancient carnivores that devoured the ancestors of humans.
”At this stage, all we’re doing is connecting the dots,” said Zeresenay Alemseged, a palaeoanthropologist at the University of Chicago in Illinois. Since we’re attempting to peer inside early hominid minds, it’s going to be quite complicated.
According to Nature, historical evidence of human butchery has been discovered at locations in Africa and Europe.
