Archaeologists have discovered the earliest known bone tools, pushing back evidence of their use by around a million years.

The find suggests early humans had more advanced tool-making skills than previously thought.

These 27 fossilised bones, shaped into tools 1.5 million years ago, are rewriting the history of early human technology.

The collection, found in Tanzania’s Olduvai Gorge, provides the earliest evidence of deliberate bone tool-making by ancient hominins.

Carved from the thick leg bones of elephants and hippos, the implements reveal that early humans were using more complex toolkits than previously thought.

Researchers know that simple stone tools were being made as far back as 3.3 million years ago. But until now, bone tools were believed to be a much later innovation.

The well-preserved artifacts, some measuring up to 40 centimetres, show clear signs of intentional shaping.

At the time they were created, our ancestors lived a precarious hunter-gatherer existence on the plans of the Serengeti region, a landscape teeming with wildlife.

They made them using a technique similar to how stone tools are made, by chipping off small flakes to form sharp edges, revealing skilled craftsmanship.

Dr Christine Adhiambo Ogola is an archaeologist at the National Museum of Kenya. She was not involved in the study.

“Bone tools are not very common because they decompose. So, there is a chance that they have always been there and many of them. But because they decompose, what is left mostly is stone tools,” she said.

The tools were likely used as handheld axes for butchering animal carcasses, particularly scavenged remains of elephants and hippos.

Unlike later tools, they were not mounted on handles or used as spears.

Researchers say the uniform selection of bones, primarily large leg bones from specific animals, suggests early humans deliberately sought out the best raw materials for making tools.

“We are not able to estimate exactly when they started using bone tools because there is a possibility that they were used much earlier. With evidence from chimpanzee use of bone tools, it means that humans at their development level could use also use them,” said Ogola.

“And think about it in terms of time. When were humans at that level? It could have been up to 4-5 million years ago.”

The discovery dates back more than a million years before Homo sapiens emerged. At the time, at least three different hominin species lived in the region, including Homo erectus, Homo habilis, and Paranthropus boisei.

While it is unclear which species made the tools, researchers say the findings suggest early humans were not simply reacting to their environment but actively planning their tool-making and selecting materials with a clear purpose in mind.

The discovery, published in the journal Nature, provides new insight into the evolving intelligence and adaptability of early human ancestors.