The Whys & Wherefores

Why did the palaeanthropologists go to Masol?

Masol has historically given anthropologists and geologists many pieces in the evolutionary puzzle. Experts have been drawn to the area since Sivapithecus—apes from two million years ago—were found in the Shivaliks in the 19th century.

How did they date the mat­erial found at the sites?

Multiple methods were used, including stratigraphy (assessing age through association with geological depo­sits or formations). Identifying layers of rock dating back to different peri­ods is what helps to date the mate­rials found embedded in them.

How and when did the disco­very happen?

Th­ere wasn’t one discovery but many. Besides three bones with cut marks, the tools used on them were found from the rock layer of the same age. The first stone tool found in a rock layer in 2008 dated older than 2.58 million years.

How did they come to this conclusion?

The fossilised bones were first dated and then the marks analysed using 3D and binocular microscopy. The marks were then compared to the ones made using the same tools on bones from the carcasses of pig and a wild deer. Only humans would be intelligent enough to make marks that way.

How much older than Harappa and Mohenjodaro are these fossils and artefacts?

Mohenjodaro and Harappa existed around 4,500 years ago. The site at Masol is 26,00,000 years old, nearly 580 times older.

Can this be a hoax?

Experts who doubt the findings say the stone tools were not dated using proper scientific methods, and that the cut marks could have been caused by animals.