The Oldest Sewing Needle...!

Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that some our really early ancestors were a lot smarter than we gave them credit for.

Take the craft of sewing, for instance. For the longest time, not much thought was given to how long that particular craft has been around. This story from Listverse may just change your mind.

Oldest Sewing Needle

Photo credit: Vesti via The Siberian Times

Archaeologists recently unearthed the world’s oldest sewing needle in Siberia’s Altai Mountains. The 50,000-year-old needle was discovered in Denisova Cave and was used by non-Homo sapiens. The 7-centimeter (2.8 in) needle contains a hole for thread and was made from the bone of a large, unidentified bird. Researchers had previously found needles in later cave layers, but this is the oldest and longest one yet discovered.

This needle predates the previous earliest-known specimen by 40,000 years. It was discovered in the same layer as our mysterious hominid cousins, the Denisovans, who were named after the cave. The Denisovans were more technologically advanced than Neanderthals. A precise hole in a Denisovan bracelet could only have been accomplished with a high-rotation drill similar to those used today.

Sounds to me as though a lot of mistaken ideas have been held by folks thinking the early ancestors were slow witted and clumsy. We may have to rethink that a bit, ya know?

Coffee out on the patio once again. Rain is not due until tomorrow morning!