International archaeologists have uncovered evidence of early human presence in southeastern Sicily, offering insights into the migration patterns of ancient humans in the Mediterranean. According to Sci.News, the findings, recently published in the journal PLoS ONE, suggest that coastal and underwater cave sites in southern Sicily hold important new clues about the path and fate of early human migrants to the island.
The research is part of the Early Occupation of Sicily (EOS) project, directed by Dr. Ilaria Patania, an assistant professor of archaeology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. According to ABC Color, the EOS project aims to identify the first stable community on the island, and analyze their impact on the environment.
Many scholars consider Sicily to be among the first islands humans settled in the Mediterranean. However, evidence suggests a late human occupation of the island, around 17,000 years ago, which is puzzling given that humans dispersed by land into Siberia about 30,000 years earlier, according to SciTechDaily. Previous studies on the early occupation of Sicily have primarily focused on the northern shores. The new research opens the possibility of an approach from the south, as reported by Discover Magazine.
According to Science Daily, the team surveyed 25 caves and rock shelters in southeastern Sicily, many of which were first identified between 1870 and the 1990s but had been lost to science over time, having ceased to be studied with scientific rigor.
One of the key sites examined is the Paleolithic site of Corruggi, located at the southernmost tip of Sicily. According to El Faro de Vigo, Corruggi was originally discovered in the 1940s and offers compelling data about the possible routes used by early humans to occupy the Mediterranean island. At this site, archaeologists recovered stone tools and other items of interest in underwater caves, with the help of citizen scientists including a retired tugboat captain and divers, as reported by El Periódico.
According to The Debrief, the timing and methods of how early migrants accomplished the crossing to Sicily remain unknown, with ongoing debates about whether they arrived by seafaring, by foot over a land bridge, or through island hopping across the Mediterranean. Sicily is less than two miles from mainland Italy, but the water crossing would have been difficult for early humans, raising questions about their modes of behavior and pathways, according to SciTechDaily.
"Understanding the timing of the initial colonization of Sicily provides key data for the pattern and mode of the early expansion of Homo sapiens into the Mediterranean," stated Dr. Ilaria Patania. The researchers are exploring these questions by examining both land and underwater sites, seeking evidence that might shed light on the migration routes of early humans.
According to Science Daily, the EOS project has found three new archaeological sites with sediments of great potential, following new land and underwater surveys in previously unexplored coastal areas. "But finding underwater sites opens up a whole new terrain to study. It allows us to reconsider routes of migration of these earliest modern human ancestors," said T.R. Kidder, the Edward S. and Tedi Macias Professor of Anthropology at Washington University.
The research team heavily involved local knowledge in their work. According to SciTechDaily, when possible, they interviewed workers who had been involved in earlier excavations and talked with local recreational divers and fishermen, including beachcombers and a retired tugboat captain. "Without that local knowledge, we would not have accomplished half of the stuff we have accomplished," said Dr. Patania, as reported by Discover Magazine.
The researchers aim not only to understand when and how the first humans arrived in Sicily but also how they interacted with the environment. "I'm very interested in how humans occupy marginal environments," stated Dr. Patania, according to Science Daily. "These are environments where if everything goes well, we are in perfect harmony with nature. But if something changes—and this could be something like global climate change, or something smaller, like the arrival of a new animal—it could be a catastrophe."
Evidence suggests that early humans may have faced challenges upon arriving in Sicily. According to Discover Magazine, the geology then was very different, with lower sea levels potentially creating land bridges and plate tectonics likely tipping sections of the island. The researchers hope to reconstruct not only the estimated time when the island was inhabited by humans but also the living environment of the migrating humans and how they faced natural events such as earthquakes, climate changes, environmental changes, and even volcanic eruptions, as reported by The Debrief.
The EOS project is funded in part by The Leakey Foundation, the Rust Family Foundation, and the Archaeological Institute of America, with support from Italian and Sicilian governmental bodies. The team's interdisciplinary approach combines archaeology, geology, and local knowledge to shed new light on a pivotal moment in human history.
"As Ilaria says, this is a very marginal environment. Did folks come down from Italy and cross the Straits of Messina, or did they come from the south along the African coast? Or is it possible that they were island hopping across the Mediterranean?" said Professor Kidder, according to The Source. "Locating sites on the south coast helps us consider pathways and thus modes of behavior."
The research has opened up new avenues for understanding early human migration in the Mediterranean. "This research shows that new ways of thinking and looking can reveal patterns that weren't visible before," added Professor Kidder, as reported by The Source.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.