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Running was one crucial way Apaches stayed in communication with their relatives. Young men were trained to be superior distance runners and would often cover 80 to 100 miles a day delivering vital information about things like food, threats, and ceremonies.
Archaeology breakthrough ends decades of mystery as huge insight into prehistoric life uncovered
Story by George Bunn
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2 min read
Archaeologists have discovered the earliest known evidence of prehistoric handcarts at White Sands National Park in New Mexico, USA, dating back an astonishing 22,000 years.
The remarkable find consists of long linear impressions extending up to 150 feet alongside human footprints preserved in ancient dried mud.
Researchers from Bournemouth University believe these track marks were created by primitive wooden transportation devices used long before the invention of the wheel.
This breakthrough finally provides tangible evidence of how our earliest ancestors transported heavy loads during their migrations across the prehistoric landscape.
The drag marks represent a type of primitive vehicle known as a travois, essentially "a wheelbarrow without the wheel," according to Matthew Bennett from Bournemouth University.
He added: "We know that our earliest ancestors must have used some form of transport to carry their possessions as they migrated around the world, but evidence in the form of wooden vehicles has rotted away."
These impressions provide the first concrete evidence of how prehistoric humans moved heavy and bulky loads before wheeled vehicles existed.
The marks appear in multiple locations throughout the park, suggesting this transportation method was widespread rather than limited to "just one inventive family."
Researchers identified two distinct types of travois designs from the ancient tracks.
Some drag marks consist of a single line, likely made by two wooden pieces joined in a triangle shape with one ground contact point.