Study finds oldest clues of origins of human clothing found in Moroccan cave

Researchers have recently discovered the bones in Contrebandiers Cave in Morocco were allegedly used for processing leather and fur around 120,000 and 90,000 years ago, according to research published in the journal iScience on September 16. Emily Hallett of Germany's Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History explained that the shape marks on the bone tools show that they were used for scraping hides to manufacture leather and scraping pelts to make fur.

Early humans' capacity to move into colder parts of the earth throughout the Pleistocene epoch was likely aided by clothing made of fur and skins. However, because fur and other organic materials are rarely preserved in the archaeological record. Especially in deposits 100,000 years or older, little is known about the history of clothing and its fabrication. According to the scientists, the new findings give very suggestive proxy evidence for the earliest clothes in archaeological records.

Researchers discover 62 bone tools

In total, researchers discovered 62 bone tools from the Contrebandiers Cave, according to Science Daily. To achieve regular shapes of tools, the bones were moulded with a variety of methods. They were polished and smoothed as well. Carcasses of sand foxes, golden jackals, and wildcats were found with the bone tools, all with marks compatible with the idea that people had stripped their skins for furs using procedures that are being employed today. 

Furthermore, researchers discovered a cetacean tooth tip with what they believe is a mix of human and non-human modifications, making it the first reported use of a marine mammal tooth by humans and the only verified marine mammal of this age from North Africa. Overall, the evidence from Contrebandiers Cave demonstrates the emergence of sophisticated civilization across Africa, including the use of various and diverse materials for specialised tool manufacturing.

"This behaviour is likely part of a larger tradition"

Hallett adds that their findings suggest that early humans were making bone tools for skin and fur preparation and that this behaviour is likely part of a larger tradition with earlier examples that have yet to be discovered, according to Science Daily. Hallett is interested to see if other archaeologists may find similar carnivore skinning patterns in other bone assemblages. She also wants to build and use bone tools in a controlled environment to learn more about the time and effort that went into manufacturing and maintaining these early bone tools. 

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