Abstract
During recent excavations of hominid-bearing breccias in the Swartkrans cave altered bones were recovered from Member 3 (about 1.0–1.5 Myr BP) which seemed to have been burnt. We examined the histology and chemistry of these specimens and found that they had been heated to a range of temperatures consistent with that occurring in campfires. The presence of these burnt bones, together with their distribution in the cave, is the earliest direct evidence for use of fire by hominids in the fossil record. Although abundant remains of Australopithecus robustus and Homo cf. erectus are found in the older Members 1 and 2 at Swartkrans, there is no evidence of fire, suggesting that the discovery of fire was made in the interval between Members 2 and 3 and before A. robustus became extinct.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on SpringerLink
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Shipman, P., Foster, G. & Schoeninger, M. J. Archaeol. Sci. 11, 307–325 (1984).
De Niro, M. J. Nature 317, 806–809 (1985).
Vrba, E. S. in Hominid Evolution Past Present and Future (ed. Tobias, P. V.) 195–200 (Alan R. Liss, New York, 1985).
Brain, C. K. et al. S. Afr. J. Sci. (in the press).
Grine, F. E. Proceedings of the International Symposium on the Evolutionary History of Robust Australopithecines (in the press).
Gowlett, J. A., Harris, J. Walton, D. & Wood, B. A. Nature 294, 125–129 (1981).
Barbetti, M. J. hum. Evol. 15, 771–782 (1986).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brain, C., Sillent, A. Evidence from the Swartkrans cave for the earliest use of fire. Nature 336, 464–466 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/336464a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/336464a0
This article is cited by
-
Organic geochemical evidence of human-controlled fires at Acheulean site of Valdocarros II (Spain, 245 kya)
Scientific Reports (2023)
-
Bone-related behaviours of captive chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) during two excavating experiments
Primates (2023)
-
Impact of a recent wildfire on tortoises at Cape Point, South Africa, and implications for the interpretation of heated bones in the archaeological record
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences (2023)
-
Early evidence of fire in south-western Europe: the Acheulean site of Gruta da Aroeira (Torres Novas, Portugal)
Scientific Reports (2020)
-
New insights for understanding spatial patterning and formation processes of the Neanderthal occupation in the Amalda I cave (Gipuzkoa, Spain)
Scientific Reports (2020)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
