TAIPEI (Reuters) – Archaeologists in Taiwan have found a 4,800-year-old human fossil of a mother holding an infant child in her arms, museum officials said on Tuesday.

The 48 sets of remains unearthed in graves in the Taichung area are the earliest trace of human activity found in central Taiwan. The most striking discovery among them was the skeleton of a young mother looking down at a child cradled in her arms.

“When it was unearthed, all of the archaeologists and staff members were shocked. Why? Because the mother was looking down at the baby in her hands,” said Chu Whei-lee, a curator in the Anthropology Department at Taiwan’s National Museum of Natural Science.

The excavation of the site began in May 2014 and took a year to complete. Carbon dating was used to determine the ages of the fossils, which included five children.

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Ancient Discovery: Over 1 Million-Year-Old Drill Bit Unearthed In Coal Seam

A drill bit, purportedly over a million years old, was discovered in a coal seam buried more than two meters under clay, mystifying scientists and sparking widespread debate. This unusual find was presented by John Buchanan to the Scottish Society of Antiquaries on December 13, 1852, where experts examined and discussed it in depth. Based on the estimated age of the coal, the tool was thought to be at least a million years old.

Buchanan noted, “I quite agree in the generally received geological view that the coal was formed long before man was introduced upon this planet; but the puzzle is, how this implement, confessedly of human hands, should have found its way into the coal seam, overlaid as the latter was by a heavy mᴀss of diluvium and boulders.”

Sceptics argued the drill might have been a remnant from earlier mining activity, but Buchanan’s detailed examination found no break in the coal surrounding the object, suggesting the tool was indeed sealed within. The coal layer itself, believed to date back to the Carboniferous period, formed approximately 300 million years ago, adding to the mystery of the tool’s presence.

This discovery piqued the interest of not only scientists but also historians, archaeologists, and anthropologists, giving rise to numerous theories on “out-of-place artefacts.” Robert Lindsay, an architect leading the excavation, documented the find with precision. His apprentice, Robert Lindsay Jr., made the initial discovery about three meters below ground, uncovering the drill in a solid block of coal.

Buchanan gathered statements from five workers who witnessed the find, reinforcing his conviction in the tool’s authenticity. He believed further research was essential to understand how such an implement could be buried so deep, adding layers of intrigue to this curious artefact and the theories of ancient human history.

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