Control of fire
This page delivers no verdict; it presents claims and evidence with their sources. No theory in science is absolute. Method
For everyone
Using fire, and later making it, allowed cooking, warmth, protection and activity after dark. Views differ widely on when fire began to be used occasionally and when it came into regular use.
For specialists
Evidence comes from burnt bone, heated flint, ash micromorphology and hearth features. In situ burning has been reported in Acheulean layers about 1 million years old at Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa. Burnt seeds and clusters of burnt flint about 790,000 years old were found at Gesher Benot Ya'aqov, Israel. One view, based on European data, holds that habitual use of fire cannot be shown before about 400,000–300,000 years ago. Distinguishing natural fire residues from human-made fire is the central methodological problem.
Views on dating
No single date is given because the date is not documented with certainty; the views of different sources are listed.
| Archaeology (Wonderwerk, South Africa) | About 1 million years ago, in situ burning[1] |
|---|---|
| Archaeology (Gesher Benot Ya'aqov, Israel) | About 790,000 years ago[2] |
| Archaeology (critical view based on European data) | Habitual use from about 400,000–300,000 years ago[3] |
| Greek mythology | The Titan Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humans (Hesiod, Theogony).[4] |
Claims
- Human ancestors have used fire for at least a million years.[1]
Evidence
Supporting
Microscopic ash and burnt bone fragments in the Wonderwerk Cave sediments point to burning inside the cave.[1]
Burnt flint at Gesher Benot Ya'aqov was found clustered in specific areas, interpreted as hearths.[2]
Challenging
Most early European sites lack traces of fire, which was used to argue that regular fire use began much later.[3]
Connections
Sources
- Article (2012). Microstratigraphic evidence of in situ fire in the Acheulean strata of Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape province, South Africa. PNAS 109(20), E1215–E1220DOI 10.1073/pnas.1117620109archive
- Article (2004). Evidence of hominin control of fire at Gesher Benot Ya'aqov, Israel. Science 304, 725–727DOI 10.1126/science.1095443archive
- Article (2011). On the earliest evidence for habitual use of fire in Europe. PNAS 108(13), 5209–5214DOI 10.1073/pnas.1018116108archive
- Classical workTheogonia / Theogony, 561–569theoi.comarchive
Search the literature
Look for scholarly work on this topic in other indexes:
Cite this page
Athena contributors. (2026). Control of fire. Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/ates/
@misc{athena_ates,
title = {Control of fire},
author = {{Athena contributors}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {\url{https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/ates/}},
note = {Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Accessed: 2026-11-01}
}Added: September 27, 2026 · Last changed: September 27, 2026 · Page history