A new study published in the journal Science reveals the discovery of 35 exquisitely preserved wooden tools dating back some 300,000 years at the Gantangqing archaeological site in southwest China's Yunnan Province, offering new insights into ancient human technology and survival strategies.

In this research, the wooden tools and antler "soft hammers" found at this site represent the earliest of their kind in East Asia and are extremely rare among Paleolithic archaeological sites globally. Alongside the wooden tools, excavations at the site yielded stone implements, bone and antler tools, animal fossils, and plant remains—all preserved in remarkable condition, according to the researchers.

Located roughly five kilometers south of Fuxian Lake in Jiangchuan County, the Gantangqing site was first identified in 1984. Initial excavations in 1989 were followed by more extensive work in 2014–2015 and 2018–2019, which uncovered the wooden materials, stone tools, and organic remains that form the basis of the new research.

The survival of wooden artifacts—rarely found in Paleolithic sites due to rapid decay—was attributed to the site's unique geological setting, the multi-disciplinary research team explained. The relics lie in ancient lacustrine and fluvial deposits from Fuxian Lake, where rapid burial in a water-saturated, oxygen-poor environment halted organic degradation.

Dating the site posed another hurdle: its age exceeds the range of carbon-14, a standard archaeological tool. Instead, the team combined paleontological stratigraphy, paleomagnetism, optically stimulated luminescence (OSL), and electron spin resonance (ESR) to pinpoint human activity between 360,000 and 250,000 years ago. OSL measurements of potassium feldspar grains, ESR analysis of animal teeth, and Bayesian modeling confirmed the timeline.

Crafted primarily from pine, the wooden tools bear clear signs of human modification: cut marks from shaping, polished tips from use, and soil residues with plant starch grains—evidence they were used to dig underground plants. Experimental simulations, which replicated tool-making and root extraction, reinforced these findings.

Stone tools at the site, mostly small scrapers, reflect adaptation to scarce local raw materials, prompting inhabitants to rely on portable, imported stones. These were likely used to fashion wooden tools and butcher prey, as indicated by marks on wood and animal bones. Notably, four deer antler "soft hammers" with usage traces suggest advanced stoneworking techniques, challenging long-held notions that East Asian Paleolithic technology lagged behind Western counterparts.

The Gantangqing site's well-preserved relics—from wooden tools to plant seeds—illuminate the complexity of ancient survival strategies, supporting the "Bamboo and Wooden Tools Hypothesis" that highlights organic tools' role in East and Southeast Asian prehistory.

This study reveals a sophisticated gathering economy and adaptive resource use in tropical-subtropical environments.

Wooden tools from the Gantangqing archaeological site. (Image by Prof. GAO Xing's team)