From Newsgroup: sci.anthropology.paleo
https://www.sci.news/archaeology/oldowan-stone-tools-namorotukunan-kenya-14331.html
Archaeologists have discovered Oldowan stone
tools in three distinct archaeological horizons,
spanning approximately 300,000 years (2.75 to 2.44
million years ago), at the site of Namorotukunan,
part of the Koobi Fora Formation in the
northeastern portion of the Turkana Basin in
KenyarCOs Marsabit district. The discovery suggests
continuity in tool-making practices over time,
with evidence of systematic selection of rock
types.
The earliest phases of tool manufacture, dating
back to over 3 million years ago, highlight
percussive technology, which is ubiquitous in
hominin records and shared with other primates.
Tool use, associated with extractive foraging, is
a recurring trait in some extant primates.
The oldest systematic production of sharp-edged
stone artifacts, known as the Oldowan, is found
in the hominin behavioral record at eastern
African sites: Ledi-Geraru and Gona in the Afar
Basin (2.6 million years ago), Ethiopia, and
Nyayanga in western Kenya (2.6-2.9 million years
ago).
Professor David R. Braun, an anthropologist at the
George Washington University and the Max Planck
Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, and
colleagues discovered multiple assemblages of
stone tools from three horizons, with age
estimates at 2.75, 2.58, and 2.44rCe million years
ago, at the site of Namorotukunan.
rCLThis site reveals an extraordinary story of
cultural continuity,rCY Professor Braun said.
rCLWhat werCOre seeing isnrCOt a one-off innovation rCo
itrCOs a long-standing technological tradition.rCY
rCLOur findings suggest that tool use may have
been a more generalized adaptation among our
primate ancestors,rCY said Dr. Susana Carvalho,
director of science at the Gorongosa National
Park in Mozambique.
...
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-64244-x
Early Oldowan technology thrived during Pliocene
environmental change in the Turkana Basin, Kenya
Abstract
Approximately 2.75 million years ago, the Turkana
Basin in Kenya experienced environmental changes,
including increased aridity and environmental
variability. Namorotukunan is a newly discovered
archaeological site which provides a window into
hominin behavioral adaptations. This site lies
within the upper Tulu Bor and lower Burgi members
of the Koobi Fora Formation (Marsabit District,
Kenya), presently a poorly understood time interval
due to large-scale erosional events. Moreover, this
locale represents the earliest known evidence of
Oldowan technology within the Koobi Fora Formation.
Oldowan sites, older than 2.6 million years ago,
are rare, and these typically represent insights
from narrow windows of time. In contrast,
Namorotukunan provides evidence of tool-making
behaviors spanning hundreds of thousands of years,
offering a unique temporal perspective on
technological stability. The site comprises three
distinct archaeological horizons spanning
approximately 300,000 years (2.75 reA 2.44rCeMa). Our
findings suggest continuity in tool-making
practices over time, with evidence of systematic
selection of rock types. Geological descriptions
and chronological data, provide robust age control
and contextualize the archaeological finds. We
employ multiple paleoenvironmental proxies, to
reconstruct past ecological conditions. Our study
highlights the interplay between environmental
shifts and technological innovations, shedding
light on pivotal factors in the trajectory of
human evolution.
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