Archaeologists in Norway have discovered what they believe could be an 8,000-year-old human skull from the Stone Age.
The discovery at Stokke, southwest of the capital, Oslo, may even contain brain matter that could help explain how humans lived during the Stone Age. A team of researchers has been digging for two months at the Stokke site because they think it sits on top of two Stone Age settlements.
Excavation leader Gaute Reitan said that it was rare they dig at a site that consists of a time of the Stone Age they know little about. The apparent brain matter in the skull, which is among many other findings at the site, is something researchers hope can give them more information about how living in the Stone Age really was.
Reitan said that something “grey and clay-like” was inside the skull, making them believe it could be brain matter. The researchers will need to carry out further analysis before learning if the bone fragments are from humans or animals. Reitan revealed that one was quite large, so it could have been a hip bone or a shoulder.
He went on to say they now need to bring in a team of experts to analyse and date their discoveries, but said they were almost certain the skull was from the Stone Age. He added that if they confirm this, then they could learn more about Stone Age life in Norway.