Stone tools are often thought of as deliberately crafted artifacts, chipped and shaped by early hominins to serve a particular function. But new research suggests that at least some of the earliest tools may not have been made, but rather, found. A study by Dr. Margherita Mussi, published in Quaternary International, examines naturally occurring basalt spheres from the Pleistocene archaeological sites of Melka Kunture, Ethiopia. The study proposes that these stones were deliberately selected and used by hominin species for various tasks for over a million years.
