Ancient Technology

The Monte Verde archaeological site in southern Chile has long been the crown jewel of evidence for the early peopling of the Americas, widely accepted as proof that humans arrived long before the Clovis culture. However, a groundbreaking new study published in the journal Science has dramatically challenged this foundational idea, suggesting the site is thousands of years younger than previously believed — and potentially rewriting the story of how and when the first humans arrived in South America. Led by University of Wyoming archaeologist Todd Surovell, alongside collaborators from Chile, Austria, and the U.S. Geological Survey, the research team reexamined the famous Monte Verde site. Their findings indicate that the site dates between 4,200 and 8,200 years old, a