Groundbreaking discovery shows humans were making fire 350,000 years earlier than previously thought

• The ability to make fire is a critical turning point in human evolution – it increased survival in harsher environments, coincided with the enlargement of the brain and contributed to the development of societal structures

A team of researchers, including the Natural History Museum’s Prof Chris Stringer, Dr Silvia Bello, Simon Parfitt and Jens Narjorka have unearthed the oldest known evidence of fire making, dating back over 400,000 years, in a disused clay pit in Suffolk. The discovery shows humans were making fire around 350,000 years earlier than previously known. The study was led by the British Museum.

Sites in Africa suggest humans used natural fire over a million years ago, but the discovery at the Palaeolithic site in Barnham evidences the creation and control of fire, which carries huge implications for human development and evolution. Until now, the oldest known evidence of fire making was from 50,000 years ago, found in northern France.

The evidence, probably produced by some of the oldest Neanderthal groups, consists of a patch of heated clay, heat-shattered flint handaxes and two small pieces of iron pyrite. It has taken the team, led by Nick Ashton and Rob Davis at the British Museum, four years to demonstrate that the heated clay was not caused by wildfire. Geochemical tests show temperatures of over 700°C with repeated fire-use in the same location of the site – indicating a campfire, or hearth, that had been used by people on several occasions.

Iron pyrite is a naturally occurring mineral that can be used to strike flint, creating sparks to ignite tinder. Pyrite’s rarity in the local area suggests these early people had knowledge of its properties, where it could be sourced and brought it to the site to make fire.

Dr Silvia Bello, expert in ancient human behaviour at London’s Natural History Museum said, 'I contributed to the microscopic analysis of the pyrites. It is incredible how much these small fragments of pyrite can tell us about the behaviour of Early Neanderthals and their capability to make, control and use fire 400,000 years ago.'

The evidence sits alongside other indicators of complex behaviour in ancient humans, at a time when brain size approached modern levels.

Professor Chris Stringer, expert palaeoanthropologist at the Museum said: ‘The people who made fire at Barnham at 400,000 years ago were probably early Neanderthals, based on the morphology of fossils around the same age from Swanscombe, Kent, and Atapuerca in Spain, who even preserve early Neanderthal DNA.’

With the ability to make fire, humans were no longer dependent on unpredictable lightning strikes and wildfires, which took time to gather for use as a campfire, and was costly and difficult to maintain. Fire making enabled humans the freedom to choose their campsites, without needing to continually feed the fire, as it could be re-ignited when and where required.

This control of fire had practical benefits of protection and warmth, enabling humans to spread and thrive in colder and harsher environments. Importantly, it widened the range of foods that could be safely eaten by removing toxins from roots and tubers, or pathogens from meat through cooking. Tenderising these foods improved digestion, freeing up energy from the gut and fueling the brain.

Being able to process a wider range of foods supported better survival and larger groups. The fire also provided a social hub where people bonded after dusk. Planning, exchanging information and socialising by firelight freed up daylight hours for hunting and gathering, collecting resources and making tools. The fireside was also the perfect place for strengthening social relationships, developing language, storytelling and belief systems. With fire, humans could both feed and bond in larger, more complex social groups.

Evidence of fire use rarely survives and is notoriously hard to demonstrate. Ash and charcoal can easily be blown or washed away, and baked sediments can be eroded and dispersed. Heated artefacts survive but it is often difficult to rule-out incidental burning in a wildfire, which is what makes the preservation of the Barnham evidence so exceptional. Notable sites in the UK, France and Portugal point to an increase in the importance of fire to early humans between 500,000 and 400,000 years ago. Barnham provides an explanation for why - the introduction of fire-making.

Professor Nick Ashton, Curator of Palaeolithic Collections at the British Museum, said: ‘This is the most remarkable discovery of my career, and I’m very proud of the teamwork that it has taken to reach this groundbreaking conclusion. It’s incredible that some of the oldest groups of Neanderthals had the knowledge of the properties of flint, pyrite and tinder at such an early date.’

Dr Rob Davis, Project Curator: Pathways to Ancient Britain at the British Museum, said: ‘The implications are enormous. The ability to create and control fire is one of the most important turning points in human history with practical and social benefits that changed human evolution. This extraordinary discovery pushes this turning point back by some 350,000 years.’

The work involved colleagues from the Natural History Museum, London, Queen Mary University of London, UCL, the University of Liverpool and Leiden University.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Images available here.

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, a disused clay pit near the village of Barnham, Suffolk, was known to contain artefacts from the Lower Palaeolithic. Initial excavations by the team took place between 1989 and 1994, producing artefact assemblages and floral and faunal remains dating to the Hoxnian Interglacial, approximately 400,000 years ago.

Recent excavations have taken place since 2013, partially run as a three-week student field school each summer, as part of the Pathways to Ancient Britain project funded by the Calleva Foundation.

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Pathways to Ancient Britain

The Pathways to Ancient Britain (PAB) project has focused on three chronological periods of human presence in the British Isles, from the earliest occupation through to extinction of the Neanderthals and the emergence of modern humans. For each time span, the project has selected specific sites that address key research questions relevant to the period.

PAB is funded by the Calleva Foundation. The PAB project is a successor to the earlier Ancient Human Occupation of Britain project, funded by the Leverhulme Trust.

It is a collaboration between the British Museum, the Natural History Museum, Queen Mary University of London and UCL.