Earliest evidence of human fire-making found at 400,000-year-old Suffolk site. Researchers led by the British Museum have uncovered what they believe is the earliest known evidence of humans making fire – at a Palaeolithic site in Barnham, Suffolk. The discovery pushes back the earliest known evidence of the practice back by an incredible 350,000 years. That’s because the site is 400,000 years old, and until now, the oldest confirmed evidence of deliberate fire-making dates to about 50,000 years ago. Scientists have long known that early humans used naturally occurring fire over a million years ago. But the Barnham site provides the earliest indication of people creating and controlling fire - a development seen as pivotal in human evolution. Professor Nick Ashton, Curator of Palaeolithic Collections at the British Museum, said: “This is the most remarkable discovery of my career, and I'm very proud of the teamwork that it has taken to reach this groundbreaking conclusion”. “It’s incredible that some of the oldest groups of Neanderthals had the knowledge of the properties of flint, pyrite and tinder at such an early date.” The evidence, thought to have been left by some of the earliest Neanderthal groups, includes a patch of heated clay, heat-shattered flint handaxes and two small pieces of iron pyrite. These discoveries suggest repeated fire use at the same spot, forming a hearth. It took the team, led by Ashton and Rob Davis at the British Museum, four years to rule out wildfire as the cause. Geochemical tests show the clay was heated to more than 700C, consistent with deliberate fire-making and multiple episodes of burning. The ability to make fire would have freed groups from depending on lightning strikes and natural wildfires, allowing them to choose campsites and rekindle flames when needed. Controlled fire offered protection and warmth, helping humans survive in colder environments, and dramatically expanded the range of foods they could safely eat.