Around 20,000 years ago, it was revealed that hunter-gatherers living in the northern regions of present-day France and Spain made hunting tools from whale bones. This is the oldest evidence of humankind processing whale bones for use as tools.
An international research team, including University Toulouse - Jean Jaurès, published results on the analysis of 83 bone tools discovered at 26 cave and rock shelter sites in southwestern France and northern Spain in the international journal "Nature Communications" on the 28th.
Most of the bone tools analyzed this time were spear points or spear shafts used for hunting bison or reindeer. The researchers noted that many small holes on the surface of these tools suggested the material was whale bone, but they conducted a detailed investigation of the chemical composition of collagen proteins for definitive analysis.
As a result, 71 of the tools were made from the bones of marine mammals, including whales, and among these, 66 were confirmed to be whale bones. Half were from sperm whales, while the others included fin whales, belugas, Blue Whales, and Arctic whales. In particular, sperm whales were believed to be ideal material for making long tools due to their long, straight, and narrow jaw bones.
The oldest whale bone tools were excavated in northern Spain and were analyzed to have been made between approximately 22,000 and 19,600 years ago. However, not all tools from this period were made using whale bones, with most dating between 17,500 and 16,000 years ago. The researchers suggested that the production of whale bone tools may have spread like a trend during a specific period.
The research team also explained that ancient peoples likely utilized whale carcasses that had washed ashore rather than hunting whales themselves. Jean-Marc Pétillon, a researcher at University Toulouse - Jean Jaurès, said, "When a whale beached, the smell would carry far, allowing people to quickly know about it, and they would have moved to that location."
This study provides significant evidence that humans have actively utilized various natural resources far earlier than previously thought. María Borao, a professor at the University of Valencia in Spain, evaluated that "most archaeological research has focused on bone tools from terrestrial animals, but this study shows the potential for utilizing marine resources, which makes it very valuable."
References
Nature Communications (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59486-8