Clay hearths up to 34,000 years old

Archaeology magazine ^ | January/February 2005 Volume 58 Number 1 | From the Trenches

[SunkenCiv]

Now that the Olympics are over, archaeologists in Greece are back to business. They've found the world's oldest clay hearths. According to a report in Antiquity, the more than 70 clay hearths, ranging from 34,000 to 23,000 years old, were identified in a single cave in the northwestern Peloponnese. Remarkably, they've also uncovered four well-preserved 2,500-year-old pomegranates, found inside a sealed bronze vessel during a salvage excavation near ancient Corinth. The oxidation of the bronze prevented microorganisms from growing and destroying the fruit, says the archaeologist who made the find. Scientists are eager to study the remarkable specimens, which are now stored in a special refrigerator.

[SunkenCiv]

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[SunkenCiv]

I've always kinda liked dehydrated fruit...

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[quantim]

ranging from 34,000 to 23,000 years old, were identified in a single cave

That must be some cave.

[Drammach]

Clay and straw, baked by a hot fire, would practically be ceramic..

Unless purposely destroyed, they would ( and did ) last forever..

[SunkenCiv]

There were some clay jars in the 34,000 year old Frigidaire (still running, those things were *built*), but I wouldn't drink the milk that was in 'em. ;')

[Hegemony Cricket]

The very first "home depot"?

[Woodstock]

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