CAVEMEN cooked fish suppers 780,000 years ago — half a million years earlier than thought.
Archaeologists discovered fish teeth in archaeology. “tasty and nutritious”Types of carp were cooked in a carefully controlled heat, but not before being eaten.
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And they could even have been served with a salad as remains of fruit, nuts, and seeds were found at the site too — along with meat from mammals.
The findings come from Israel’s Gesher Benot Ya’aqov dig site, on the banks of the River Jordan.
Dr Irit Zohar from Tel Aviv University said: “They illustrate prehistoric humans’ ability to control fire in order to cook food, and their understanding of the benefits of cooking fish before eating it.”
Dr. Naama Goren Inbar, chief of dig, was added by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem “It marks a significant evolutionary advance. It is even possible that cooking also included various types of animals and plants.”
The team told journal Nature Ecology and Evolution that crystals inside the fossilised teeth showed they had been exposed to heat of 500C — less than half the temperature of naked flames.
Dr Jens Njorka, London Natural History Museum said: “We do not know exactly how the fish were cooked but it is clear that they were not just thrown into a fire.”