13,800-year-old Alaska campsite reveals tools, a hearth and clues to early life near Beringia

13,800-year-old Alaska campsite reveals tools, a hearth and clues to early life near Beringia (Image Credit: Kelly Graf via Discover Magazine) Thousands of years before permanent settlements became common across North America, small groups of people were already adapting to life in the continent’s far north. In interior Alaska, archaeologists have uncovered an exceptionally rich campsite dating back approximately 13,800 years, containing stone tools, bone implements, a hearth and traces of what may have been a shelter. Together, these remains offer a rare glimpse into the daily activities of some of the earliest people to inhabit the region.According to a study published in Science Advances, researchers investigated the Shég’ Xdaltth’í’ archaeological site in Alaska to understand how early populations moved through and settled in Beringia, the region that once connected northeastern Asia and northwestern North America. The findings reveal repeated human activity, sophisticated toolmaking, organised activity areas and a possible dwelling, helping scientists investigate how people adapted to the challenging environment during the Late Pleistocene.A campsite preserving thousands of ye...