Pendant from 41,500 years ago may have uncovered a 'step in evolution'

CNET ^ | 25 November 2021 | Monisha Ravisetti

[blueplum]

In 2010, scientists unearthed an ivory pendant from an abandoned Polish cave. Punctured with patterns reminiscent of moon cycles and mathematics, the artifact's origins eluded archaeologists -- until now. An international team of researchers just declared the relic to be 41,500 years old.

That makes it the earliest piece of ornate jewelry ever found in Eurasia, and a wonderful reminder that art is timeless. Images and details of the discovery were published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

But beyond its aesthetic value, this ancient pendant also marks the first proof of post-Neanderthal civilization in the Polish region...

[blueplum]

the CNET article is an easier read than the Nature dot com article but the Nature "Scientific Reports" article has more detail

[Sacajaweau]

The material may be that old.....but that doesn’t mean the carvings are that old. Any “when” is an assumption. That’s what has always bothered me about their work.

[alexander_busek]

The material may be that old.....but that doesn’t mean the carvings are that old. Any “when” is an assumption.

Ivory can be carbon-dated. As can any other organic items found in close proximity.

Regards,

[GOP Poet]

bookmark

[SES1066]

Pendant from 41,500 years ago may have uncovered a 'step in evolution'

I chalk this up (for now) to headline writing / clickbait as this has nothing to do with evolution. It is a marker in the geographic spread of humankind and that is sufficiently interesting of itself. By what I read on line, this was likely between 2 glaciation eras in Poland as the last one is dated to around 21k years ago.

[j.argese]

Wow! More than 40,000 years before Earth was created.

[Adder]

And there doesn’t seem to be anyway to check the results independently. Her date is THE date.

[Openurmind]

Too bad some of the punch holes are missing. If one had the exact number a numerical relationship might be made.

[mewzilla]

...But beyond its aesthetic value, this ancient pendant also marks the first proof of post-Neanderthal civilization...

Horse hockey.

[mewzilla]

Thanks for the link!

From it...

...The Stajnia Cave plate is a personal 'jewellery' object that was created 41,500 calendar years ago...

SNORT.

[cranked]

Science, of any type, today is an utter frakin’ joke, if not a mockery.

[Openurmind]

http://www.csun.edu/~vcgeo005/Nr61Hawaii.pdf

[PIF]

Then there is this piece from around 70,000 BC, presumed to have been made by Denisovans who are thought to be related to Neanderthals

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The 7,000-year-old stone bracelet is oldest ever found in the world (date in title missing a zero)

Polished zone of intensive contact with some soft organic material. General reconstruction of the view of the bracelet and comparison with the modern bracelet.

[Brooklyn Attitude]

“That makes it the earliest piece of ornate jewelry ever found in Eurasia,...”

“Ornate”? Its got a hole and some indentations.

[Openurmind]

I have doubts about the bauble hanging they present. If they had the technology to shape and polish the bracelet so finely, then I suspect they could have instead shaped and polished another more ornate and valuable stone to set/glue into the hole.

[salmon76]

Wow! More than 40,000 years before Earth was created.

Probably carved from freshly-killed dinosaur bone. See Genesis 1:24-26.

[PIF]

I have doubts about the bauble hanging they present ... they could have instead shaped and polished another more ornate and valuable stone to set/glue into the hole.

—
My though is that many women like the touch of an object on sensitive skin (earrings, a case in point), else why do women to this day wear bracelets with dangling objects? As for setting a stone, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

[Openurmind]

I made a lot of Jewelry for awhile as a hobby income, it was always logical to set a “display” centerpiece in bracelets like that. It is a natural tendency to dress up bracelets with a more ornate center of attention. Just like rings, bracelets are usually designed to be a canvas/holder for artistic engravings or a center piece stone/stones.

[Dusty Road]

Assumption and speculation seem to be a constant part of Archeology anymore. Things like ceremonial and lunar get thrown around rather cheaply. They hate to say “I don’t know”.

[Leep]

What it actually is is the first Polish joke.