The team, led by Professor Lyn Wadley of the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa , in collaboration with Christopher Miller, University of Tübingen, in Germany , Christine Bamford Marion Sievers and also of the Witwatersrand, and Paul Goldberg and Francesco Berna Boston University in the United States , have described the discovery in the journal ' Science '.
The old bed was discovered during excavations in Sibudu, a rock shelter in the province of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa), where Lyn Wadley, a professor at the University of Witwatersrand has been excavating since 1998. At least 15 different layers contain bedding, 77,000 and 38,000 between years. The bedding consists of layers of several centimeters thick compact stems and leaves of reeds, which extend for at least one square meter and a maximum of three square meters in the excavated area. Christine Sievers, University of Witwatersrand, nutlets identified several types of reed used in the construction of the bedding.
The bedding, which is very well preserved, consists of a layer of stems and leaves fossilized reed covered by a thin layer of leaves, identified by the botanist Marion Bamford as belonging to Cryptocarya woodii, the leaves of this tree contain chemicals insecticides suitable for repelling mosquitoes.
The selection of these sheets for the construction of beds suggests that the first inhabitants of Sibudu had a great knowledge of plants surrounding the shelter, and were aware of its medicinal uses. According to Lyn Wadley, "the ancient inhabitants gathered uThongathi reeds in the river, just below the place and available to the plants on the floor of the house. The bedding was not used only for sleeping, but also provided a comfortable surface for the life and work. "
Microscopic analysis of the bedding, directed by Christopher Miller, Professor of Geoarchaeology at the University of Tübingen, suggests that the inhabitants bedding reformed repeatedly during the course of the occupation. Microscopic analysis showed that the inhabitants of Sibudu bedding burned after use. "They burned the bedding used possibly as a way to eliminate pests," explains Miller.
The bedding is also associated with preserved remains of fireplaces and numerous deposits of ash. 58 thousand years ago, the number of fireplaces, bed and ash increased dramatically, archaeologists believe this is due to intensive use. In the article, archaeologists argue that the increase in employment corresponds to the demographic changes of the moment, in Africa 50 thousand years ago, modern humans began to expand out of Africa, replacing the archaic humans of Eurasia , including the Neanderthals.
This discovery adds to a long list of important findings in Sibudu in the last decade, including perforated shells used as beads, bone points, and sharp, probably used for hunting.
