400,000-Year-Old Hunting Secrets Uncovered in Lebanon

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Fossils found on the Lebanese coast, dating back 400,000 years, reveal that ancient hominins practiced seasonal and planned hunting in Mediterranean forests despite climate change.

400,000-Year-Old Hunting Secrets Uncovered in Lebanon
Image credit: Arkeonews

Animal remains discovered in caves along the Lebanese coast, dating back 400,000 years, have shed light on how ancient hominin species engaged in planned hunting within Mediterranean forests and adapted to challenging climatic conditions. New research on these centuries-old collections, preserved at the Prehistoric Museum of Lebanon in Beirut, provides evidence that the region served as a critical and stable refuge for early humans migrating from Africa to Eurasia.

400,000-Year-Old Secrets Emerge from Museum Archives

Researchers examined fossils excavated from three Paleolithic sites on the Lebanese coast: Ras el-Kelb, Nahr Ibrahim, and Naame. A significant portion of these bones was collected over 130 years ago by Jesuit scholar Godefroy Zumoffen. These collections, which had remained in museum storage for years with their chronological order not fully understood, have been transformed into a vast archive illuminating human history through analysis with modern dating methods. The data obtained reveals a continuous environmental record spanning from 400,000 to 100,000 years ago.

Hunting at the Right Time and Place

The findings indicate that ancient humans did not wander aimlessly in nature; rather, they possessed a profound understanding of animal movements and seasonal locations. Evidence of butchery marks on wild ox bones from Nahr Ibrahim, along with burnt bones and stone tools from Ras el-Kelb, attest to the specialized hunting skills of hominins. Microscopic wear analysis on teeth has revealed that dangerous and large prey, such as wild oxen and rhinoceroses, were systematically targeted during specific seasons.

Around 400,000 years ago, hominins in various parts of the world were known to have developed diverse hunting strategies. For instance, previous research has documented the hunting of elephants in Italy for their bones to be used in toolmaking [1], the systematic hunting of beavers in Germany [2], and the consumption of small game like rabbits in Southern Europe [3]. The new discoveries in Lebanon highlight the extent of this hunting repertoire in the Middle East.

A Green Refuge Resilient to Climate Crisis

One of the most surprising outcomes of the research was the environmental stability of the Lebanese coast. Despite severe glacial and interglacial periods on a global scale, the Lebanese coastal strip consistently remained a rich mosaic of fertile forests, scrublands, and open areas. As the Southern Levant region grew increasingly arid, the preservation of this verdant landscape along the Lebanese coast transformed it into a veritable oasis for hominins. Offering reliable water sources and abundant game, this region served as a vital migratory corridor for numerous human species, including the earliest Homo sapiens communities migrating from Africa to Eurasia.

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