Our species originated in Africa around 300,000 years ago and subsequently migrated across the globe, reaching even the most isolated regions. This expansion required our ancestors to overcome significant geographical obstacles, including vast ocean stretches, using only basic technology.
To understand how these ancient journeys were possible, scientists recently conducted an experimental voyage across a section of the East China Sea. They paddled a dugout canoe from Ushibi, Taiwan, to Japan’s Yonaguni Island, demonstrating a potential method used by people some 30,000 years ago to spread across the Pacific Islands.
The researchers recreated Paleolithic methods and tools, such as an axe and an adze, to construct the 25-foot (7.5-meter) canoe, named Sugime, from a Japanese cedar tree. A crew of five paddled the canoe for over 45 hours, covering approximately 140 miles (225 km) of open sea while battling the powerful Kuroshio Current. Despite extreme fatigue and a period of drifting, the crew successfully reached Yonaguni. Like their prehistoric counterparts, they navigated by the sun, stars, and ocean swells, though two escort boats accompanied them for safety.
Previous attempts by the researchers using reed and bamboo rafts failed due to their slowness, lack of durability, and inability to withstand the strong current.
Insights from the Expedition
“Through the project with many failures, we have learned the difficulties of crossing the ocean, and this experience gave us a deep respect for our Paleolithic ancestors,” said University of Tokyo anthropologist Yousuke Kaifu, the lead author of a study published in Science Advances. “We found that the Paleolithic people could cross the sea with the strong ocean current if they had dugout canoes and were skillful, experienced paddlers and navigators. They had to face the risk of being drifted by the strong ocean current and the possibility that they would never be able to come back to their homeland,” added Kaifu, who observed from an escort boat.
Archaeological evidence suggests that people first crossed from Taiwan to the Ryukyu islands (including Okinawa) roughly 30,000 years ago. However, the precise methods they used, given their rudimentary technology—no maps, no metal tools, and primitive vessels—remained a puzzle, especially considering the challenge posed by the strong Kuroshio Current.
Connecting to Previous Research and Future Implications
This research echoes the famous 1947 Kon-Tiki expedition, where Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl sailed a raft from South America to Polynesia to demonstrate how prehistoric people might have colonized the islands. While Heyerdahl’s theory is now largely disproven, Kaifu noted, “Compared to the time of the Kon-Tiki, we have more archeological and other evidence to build realistic models” of prehistoric voyages.
In a companion study, researchers used simulations of ancient sea conditions between Taiwan and Yonaguni, revealing that crossing the Kuroshio was feasible even when the current was stronger. “As our paleo-ocean model simulation showed, crossing the Kuroshio was possible in ancient times, so I believe they achieved it,” said Yu-Lin Chang, a physical oceanographer and lead author from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology. However, Chang also cautioned that unpredictable weather could have led to failures in ancient journeys due to highly variable ocean conditions.
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