In a Siberian cave, archaeologists discovered a 40,000-year-old bracelet made by an extinct human species

New images reveal the beauty and artistry of archaic jewelry from the Denisovan race of early humans, which goes back 40,000 years.

It’s made of polished green stone and was only worn on exceptional occasions by a highly prominent woman or child. This isn’t a modern-day fashion item; instead, it’s thought to be the world’s oldest stone bracelet, going back 40,000 years.

After extensive examination, Russian specialists now recognize its astonishing age as true. It was discovered in the Altai area of Siberia in 2008.

New images reveal this ancient piece of jewelry in all its grandeur, leading experts to believe it was created by our prehistoric human predecessors, the Denisovans, and that they were considerably more advanced than previously thought.

‘The bracelet is spectacular – it reflects the sun rays in strong sunlight and casts a deep shade of green beside the fire at night,’ said Anatoly Derevyanko, Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography in Novosibirsk, which is part of the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Siberian Branch.

‘It’s improbable that it was worn as a piece of everyday jewelry.’ ‘I assume this lovely and delicate bracelet was only worn on special occasions.’

The bracelet was discovered in the Altai Mountains’ Denisova Cave, which is notable for its palaeontological findings dating back to the Denisovans, also known as homo altaiensis, a genetically different species of humans from Neanderthals and contemporary humans.

The bracelet, which is made of chlorite, was discovered in the same strata as the bones of some prehistoric individuals and is assumed to belong to them.

The manufacturing method was more frequent in a later age, such as the Neolithic era, which made the discovery even more remarkable. Indeed, it is unclear how the Denisovans were able to create the bracelet with such finesse.

‘There were recovered two shards of the bracelet with a width of 2.7cm and a thickness of 0.9 cm,’ Dr Derevyanko said in the Novosibirsk journal Science First Hand. The find’s diameter was estimated to be 7cm. A drilled hole with a diameter of around 0.8 cm was found near one of the fissures. Scientists discovered that the drill’s rotation speed was rather high, with few variations, and that drilling with an implement was used — a technology that has been increasingly widespread in recent years.

‘The ancient master was competent in skills previously thought not to be typical of the Palaeolithic age, such as drilling with an instrument, boring tool type rasp, grinding and polishing with a leather and skins of varied degrees of tanning,’ according to the researchers.

Chlorite was not found in the cave’s immediate area and is assumed to have traveled at least 200 kilometers, demonstrating how valuable the substance was at the time.

The bracelet had been damaged, according to Dr. Derevyanko, with noticeable scratches and bumps, but some of the marks appeared to have been sanded down.

Experts also believe the piece of jewelry has additional adornments to enhance its beauty.

‘A restricted polished zone of extensive contact with some soft organic substance can be seen clearly next to the hole on the exterior surface of the bracelet,’ stated Dr Derevyanko. ‘Scientists believe it was a leather strap with a charm on it, and that the item was rather hefty.’

Because of the polished section’s placement, the ‘top’ and ‘bottom’ of the bracelet could be identified, as well as the fact that it was worn on the right hand.’

Zone of intense touch with some soft organic substance that has been polished. Reconstruction of the bracelet’s perspective and comparison with the moderator’s bracelet. Anatoly Derevyanko and Mikhail Shunkov, Anastasia Abdulmanova, Anatoly Derevyanko and Mikhail Shunkov

The Denisova Cave, located close to the Anuy River about 150 kilometers south of Barnaul, is a renowned tourist site due to its paleontological significance. Several relics of extinct creatures, notably the woolly mammoth, have been discovered there throughout the years. A total of 66 distinct types of animals and 50 bird species have been identified inside.

The bones of the Denisovans, a group of early humans that lived 600,000 years ago and were distinct from both Neanderthals and modern humans, were the most thrilling find.

In the cave, scientists uncovered a tooth from a young adult in 2000, and when the bracelet was unearthed in 2008, experts discovered the finger bone of a juvenile Denisovan hominid, whom they called the ‘X lady.’ Other artifacts reaching back as far as 125,000 years were discovered during further investigation of the site.

The discovery, according to the institute’s deputy director Mikhail Shunkov, implies that the Denisovans were more sophisticated than Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, despite the fact that they are now extinct.

‘Interesting items were found in the same stratum where we found a Denisovan bone; until then, it was thought these were the hallmark of the advent of Homo sapiens,’ he added. ‘First and foremost, there were symbolic objects such as jewelry – including the stone bracelet and a marble ring.’

The ring’s precise specifications are yet to be released.

‘These discoveries were created using technological processes that are generally associated with a later period – boring stone, drilling with a tool, grinding – yet they were utilized so early in the Paleolithic age, nowhere else in the globe. We first associated the discoveries with a developing version of contemporary human, but this proved to be incorrect. These items were obviously left by Denisovans.’

This revealed that Denisovans were “the most advanced of the trio” (Homo sapiens, Homo Neanderthals, and Denisovans), who were “far more archaic than Neanderthals and modern humans” based on their genetic and anatomical characteristics.”

Could this modern-looking jewelry, on the other hand, have been buried among ancient remains?

This idea was investigated but dismissed by the researchers, who think the strata were uncontaminated by human involvement from a later date. Oxygen isotopic analysis was also used to date the soil around the bracelet.

The one-of-a-kind bracelet is currently on display at Novosibirsk’s Museum of History and Culture of the Peoples of Siberia and the Far East. ‘I adore this find,’ said Irina Salnikova, the museum’s director. Its creator’s abilities were flawless. We first assumed it was produced by Neanderthals or contemporary people, but the master turned out to be Denisovan, at least in our perspective.

‘All jewelry had a mystical meaning for ancient people and even for us now, though we may not realize it. Bracelets and neck adornments, for example, were used to ward off bad spirits. Given the complex technology and ‘imported’ materials, this object clearly belonged to a high-ranking member of that culture.’

While bracelets have been discovered before to this find, Russian scientists claim that this is the earliest known stone jewelry.