Ancient toxins: 60,000-year-old poisoned arrows reveal startling prehistoric ingenuity

Scientists have confirmed that 60,000-year-old stone arrowheads from a South African rock shelter were coated with a plant-based poison, representing the oldest direct evidence of poisoned weaponry ever found. Advanced chemical analysis detected toxic compounds from the Boophone disticha plant on the artifacts, a definitive signature of human application and not a natural occurrence. The […]