What Did Stone Age People Eat Before Agriculture Emerged About 10,000 Years Ago? A long-standing narrative about the diet of ancient humans suggests they feasted on mammoth steaks. But is this truly accurate?
Scientists have analyzed chemical signatures preserved in the bones and teeth of at least 7 Iberomaurusian individuals and discovered that plants, rather than meat, were the primary source of protein in their diet.
Researchers gathered evidence of ancient dietary practices through the study of human remains excavated from the Taforalt Cave in Morocco.
A human tooth recovered from the Taforalt Cave in Morocco showed significant wear and severe cavities. Heiko Temming, a PhD researcher at Géosciences Environnement Toulouse, a research institute in France, and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, stated: “Our analysis indicates that these hunter-gatherer groups incorporated wild plants into their diets. This has transformed our understanding of the diets of pre-agricultural populations.”
The proportion of plants as a protein source in the diets of these individuals resembles what is observed in the early farmers of the Levant, the modern-day Eastern Mediterranean countries, where the domestication and cultivation of plants were first recorded.
Researchers also found a higher incidence of cavities in the Taforalt specimens compared to what is typically observed in the remains of hunter-gatherers from that era.
According to the study, evidence suggests that the Iberomaurus people consumed “fermentable starchy plants” such as wild cereals or tubers.
This research focused on the diet of a group of Stone Age hunter-gatherers. However, a similar study published in January of this year analyzed the remains of 24 early individuals from two burial sites in Peru, dating back 9,000 to 6,500 years ago, revealing that the ancient diet in the Andes consisted of 80% plants and 20% meat.
A study published in November 2022 revealed that Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens were sophisticated cooks, combining plant-based ingredients such as wild nuts, peas, chickpeas, lentils, and wild mustard.
