An analysis of 150 round, baseball-sized stones found at an ancient site provides evidence that these stones were intentionally shaped into spheres. This discovery challenges the notion that they naturally became round after being used as hammers.
Although the deliberate shaping of these stones is clear, the purpose behind their creation remains a mystery. “Unfortunately, we still can’t be confident about what they were used for,” says Antoine Muller from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The site where these stones were discovered, called ‘Ubeidiya, is located in modern-day northern Israel. It was first found in 1959 and is believed to have been used by Homo erectus, one of our earliest ancestor species, as they migrated out of Africa. Thousands of stone tools and a few human bones have been unearthed at this site.
Similar spherical stones, known as spheroids, have been found at various early human sites dating back as far as 1.8 million years ago. The exact purpose of these objects remains unknown, and theories suggest that they might be byproducts of making other stone tools or stones that became round as they were used as hammers, rather than being purposely shaped.
To investigate this, Muller and his colleagues studied 150 limestone spheroids from ‘Ubeidiya. These stones varied in roundness and were approximately 8 centimeters in diameter, similar to the size of a baseball. Through their analysis, the researchers determined the sequence of strikes that were responsible for shaping each stone.
Their findings indicate that creating these spheroids required skill and planning, similar to the creation of hand axes. However, it is unknown if the same level of intentionality applies to other spheroids found at the site. “Clearly, whoever made these objects was working hard to make them spheres,” says Andrew Wilson from Leeds Beckett University. Wilson previously showed that typical spheroids have the appropriate shape and weight for throwing, suggesting they might have been used as hunting weapons.
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