Bird-shaped pestle
c. 4000-8000 years old · Resource
A finely carved stone pestle in the form of a long-necked bird, used by early Papua New Guinea farmers to grind taro. Evidence of one of the world's independent origins of agriculture.
On these timelines: British Museum, Resources: Combined
Around 6000 BCE
- Çatalhöyük at its peak (7000 BCE)
- Spread of agriculture to Europe (5000 BCE)
- Maize domesticated in Mesoamerica (7000 BCE)
- Maize domestication (7000 BCE)
- Earliest evidence of lead smelting (6500 BCE)
- Earliest evidence of copper smelting (5000 BCE)
- Green Sahara and Saharan rock art (6000 BCE)
- Middle Jomon settlement at Sannai-Maruyama (5000 BCE)