Studies on stone tools shed light on evolution

Archaeological studies on the use of stone tools found in the Changbai Mountain area of Jilin province have enriched the understanding of evolution and the spread of modern humans through Northeast Asia, according to the National Cultural Heritage Administration.

Nearly 20,000 lithic, or stone, tools and animal fossils have been discovered from three stages of cultural remains at the Dadong site in Helong city, Jilin province, administration officials said at a news conference in Beijing on Thursday. The site dates from roughly 50,000 to 15,000 years ago, belonging to the late Paleolithic period.

It covers about 4 square kilometers, with its core area exceeding 500,000 square meters. The site is an unusually large size for the Paleolithic period, said Wang Youping, an archaeology professor at Peking University.