The first humans stayed in the “oldest hotel” in America in the Mexican cave

A cave in a remote part of Mexico was visited by humans about 30,000 years ago, 15,000 years earlier than people were thought to have arrived in the Americas.

Thorough excavations of the Chiquihuite cave, located in a mountainous area of ​​northern Mexico controlled by drug cartels, uncovered nearly 2,000 stone tools from a small section of the cave at high altitude.

Archaeological analysis of the tools and DNA analysis of the sediment in the cave uncovered a new history of colonization of the Americas that now tracks evidence from the first Americans 25,000-30,000 years ago.

The results, which have been published in Nature Today (July 22, 2020), challenge the commonly held theory that the Clovis were the first human inhabitants of the Americas 15,000 years ago.

DNA science professor Eske Willerslev, from St John’s College, University of Cambridge, and director of the Lundbeck Foundation Center for Geogenetics, University of Copenhagen, led the study with archaeologist Dr. Ciprian Ardelean, from the University of Zacatecas in Mexico .

Professor Willerslev said: “For decades, people have passionately debated when the first humans entered the Americas. The Chiquihuite Cave will create much more debate, as it is the first site dating to the arrival of people on the continent some 30,000 years ago. , 15,000 years earlier than previously thought. These early visitors did not occupy the cave continuously, we believe that people spent part of the year there using it as a winter or summer refuge, or as a base for hunting during migration. This could be the oldest hotel in America. “

The 10-year research project raises more questions about the first humans who lived in the Americas than it solves.

Dr. Ardelean said, “We don’t know who they were, where they came from, or where they were going. They are a complete puzzle. We falsely assume that the indigenous populations in the Americas today are direct descendants of the first Americans, but now we do not believe that it is So.

“When the famous Clovis population entered the United States, the first Americans had disappeared thousands of years before. There could have been many failed colonizations that were lost over time and left no genetic trace on the current population.”

The Chiquihuite cave is a high altitude site, 2,750 meters above sea level. About 2,000 stone tools and small tool fragments, known as scales, were discovered. DNA analysis of plant and animal remains from the sediment packed around tools in the cave dates the tools and human occupation of the site 25,000-30,000 years ago. No human DNA was found, adding weight to the theory that the first people didn’t stay long in the cave.

Dr. Mikkel Winther Pedersen, a geneticist at the University of Copenhagen and one of the first authors of the article, said: “We identified the DNA of a wide range of animals, including black bears, rodents, bats, field mice, and even kangaroo rats. They think that these first people would probably have returned for a few months of the year to exploit the recurring natural resources available to them and then move on. Probably when the herds of large mammals would have been in the area and who had little experience with humans to They could have been easy prey. The location of the Cueva Chiquihuite definitely rewrites what has been conventionally taught in history and archeology and shows that we must rethink where we look for the sites of the first people in America. “

The Chiquihuite Cave site is very difficult to reach and would have been a good vantage point for the first people to defend themselves, as they could gaze miles over the valley without being seen. It is in an area of ​​Mexico that is now controlled by drug cartels. The academics were escorted by the armed police to the base of the mountain before walking up to the cave.

Dr. Pedersen said: “It was an unforgettable experience. It is a very unsafe place to travel, so we were accompanied by Mexican police in armored vehicles at the foot of the mountain. We left before dawn to go up to the cave so that we were not seen “

Visiting DNA scientists slept in the cave during their research visit and for the past 10 years, Dr. Ardelean has spent several months living in the cave to carry out the detailed excavations.

Dr. Ardelean added: “The people of the Americas are the last holy grail in modern archeology. Unconventional sites must be taken seriously and we must intentionally go out and search for them. This site does not solve anything, it just shows that these early sites They exist. We are dealing with a handful of humans thousands of years ago, so we cannot expect the signals to be very clear. We have literally dug deeper than anyone in the past. “

The oldest human DNA in the Americas currently stands at 12,400 years ago, explained Dr. Ardelean: “We have shown that the previously sustained date of human presence is not the oldest date to populate the Americas, it is the date of the explosion of the population of the Americas “. “

Professor Willerslev concluded: “I will never forget being part of this research, it was an incredible experience. The implications of these findings are just as important, if not more so, than the finding itself. This is just the beginning of the next chapter in the popular debate. early in the Americas. ”