Newly discovered stone tools drag dawn of Greek archaeology back by a quarter-million years

By NICHOLAS PAPHITIS
Associated Press

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece is famous for its ancient sites. But the country’s Culture Ministry says the oldest of them all, dating to the time of modern humans’ hominin ancestors, has been discovered in an open coal mine in the southern Megalopolis area. The find announced Thursday would drag back the dawn of Greek archaeology by up to a quarter of a million years, although older hominin sites have been discovered elsewhere in Europe. Researchers say they discovered rough stone tools from about 700,000 years ago, as well as the remains of an extinct species of giant deer, elephants, hippopotamus, rhinoceros and a macaque monkey.