Rope making in the Aurignacian of Central Europe more than 35,000 years ago

Abstract

Evidence for the manufacture and use of fiber technology such as rope and twine is rare in the Paleolithic, despite the widely held view that such artifacts were in regular use during the Pleistocene. On the basis of the discovery of a more than 35,000-year-old perforated baton made from mammoth ivory at Hohle Fels Cave in Ach Valley of southwestern Germany together with experimental studies, we are now able to demonstrate one way people of the early Upper Paleolithic manufactured rope. This work contributes to our understanding of the evolution of technology, cooperative work, and Paleolithic social organization.

The ties that bind: Computational, cross-cultural analyses of knots reveal their cultural evolutionary history and significance

“…The use of materials like plant fibres, leather, rawhide, or sinew to twine, bind, or secure objects is an ancient human technology [1,2]. Whether employing a simple strip or utilizing twined or corded materials -collectively known as 'string' -this practice has long been fundamental to human innovation.…”