Neandertals made fire with flint and pyrite 400,000 years ago
Tools and geochemical traces from Barnham in southern England show repeated intentional fire-making by early Neandertals, according to a Nature report on December 10, 2025.
- Archaeologists unearthed flint and iron pyrite at Barnham linked to hearth sediments dated to about 400,000 years ago.
- Geochemical analysis indicates sediments were heated multiple times to temperatures above 700 degrees Celsius, consistent with controlled fires.
- Iron pyrite is unusually rare locally, implying it was transported to the site and used to strike sparks against flint.
- This is the oldest clear evidence of intentional fire-making with pyrite and flint, extending the record by roughly 350,000 years.
- Researchers attribute the finds to early Neandertals or a closely related population living in an interglacial landscape.
- Key questions remain about whether fire-making knowledge spread widely or developed repeatedly in isolated groups.