Unraveling an Ancient Mystery: How Humans Crossed the Seas 30,000 Years Ago
More than 30,000 years ago, humans accomplished an incredible feat: migrating across 140 miles of open ocean from what is now Taiwan to the Ryukyu Islands of southwestern Japan. This journey occurred long before the advent of modern navigation or complex vessel technology. While archaeological sites on the Ryukyu Islands reveal evidence of these early inhabitants – including stone tools, fishhooks, and hearths – they offer few clues about the boats they used, likely because these ancient watercraft were made from perishable organic materials that didn’t survive the millennia.
This posed a significant puzzle for scientists: how did these prehistoric people successfully traverse such a vast and challenging expanse of sea, particularly battling the powerful Kuroshio Current, one of the world’s strongest ocean currents?
Recreating the Voyage: An Experimental Archaeology Project
To shed light on this ancient migration, a team of researchers and expert seafarers, led by anthropologist Yousuke Kaifu of the University of Tokyo, embarked on an ambitious experimental archaeology project. Their goal was to test whether a sea journey from Taiwan to the Ryukyus was even possible using only the technology available to Paleolithic people.
The team began by experimenting with different potential vessel designs. They first tested reed-bundle rafts and bamboo rafts, types of watercraft known to have been used in other ancient contexts. However, these proved inadequate for the conditions of the East China Sea; they were too slow and struggled to withstand the strong currents, making a successful crossing highly improbable.
Building ‘Sugime’ with Stone Age Tools
Based on these initial findings and the understanding that more substantial vessels might have been needed, the researchers turned to the dugout canoe. This simple yet effective design is known to have been used in the region as far back as 10,000 years ago and offered a more robust option.
Crucially, the team committed to using only replica stone tools with wooden handles, mirroring the technology available to the ancient seafarers. With immense effort and skill, they used these primitive tools to fell a three-foot-thick Japanese cedar tree. The painstaking process continued as they hollowed out the massive trunk and shaped it into a 25-foot-long dugout canoe they affectionately named “Sugime.”
Embarking on the 140-Mile Journey
In July 2019, after careful preparation and waiting for suitable weather conditions, five experienced paddlers boarded Sugime in eastern Taiwan. Their destination: Yonaguni Island, the closest of the Ryukyu Islands, approximately 140 miles away.
Emulating their prehistoric ancestors, the team forewent all modern navigational aids, relying solely on traditional methods. They navigated using the position of the sun during the day, the stars at night, and observations of the ocean swells and currents.
The voyage was far from easy. The crew faced choppy seas, battled extreme fatigue, and endured physical discomfort. A significant challenge was that Sugime constantly took on water, requiring one paddler to frequently bail out the vessel to keep it afloat. Despite these hardships and needing a period to rest while drifting, they pressed on, accompanied by escort boats for safety – a necessary modern concession for the experimental journey.
Success Against the Current: Proving Ancient Capability
After an arduous 45 hours at sea, battling the elements and the persistent Kuroshio Current, the team successfully reached Yonaguni Island.
Their accomplishment provided compelling evidence that the ancient migration from Taiwan to the Ryukyu Islands using a dugout canoe, built and navigated with only Paleolithic technology, was indeed possible. While the voyage highlighted the limitations of the vessel – particularly its tendency to take on water – it more importantly underscored the incredible skill, endurance, and navigational expertise that the original prehistoric seafarers must have possessed to complete such a perilous undertaking.
Lead author Yousuke Kaifu reflected on the project, stating that the numerous challenges and small discoveries along the way fostered a deep respect for their Paleolithic ancestors. He noted that while the crossing was technologically feasible with a dugout canoe for skilled individuals, the unpredictable nature of the ocean meant it would have remained a highly risky endeavor for ancient voyagers.
Wider Implications for Understanding Human History
This experiment is part of a growing global trend in experimental maritime archaeology, where researchers reconstruct ancient vessels to test migration theories. Similar projects have replicated voyages between Indonesian islands using bamboo rafts and tested eighth-century boats in France.
Maritime archaeologist Helen Farr emphasizes that these experimental projects offer unique insights that are often missing from the standard archaeological record, which primarily consists of durable items like stone tools and fossils. Recreating activities like seafaring reveals a level of skill, planning, and “little human details” that are otherwise invisible to researchers, offering a deeper understanding of how our ancient ancestors lived and migrated across the globe. The project also connects with the resurgence of Indigenous seafaring traditions in the Pacific, where communities are actively reclaiming their maritime heritage through voyaging projects.
Furthermore, a companion study using paleo-ocean models reinforced the findings by simulating sea conditions 30,000 years ago. These simulations indicated that even if the Kuroshio Current was stronger in the past, crossing it would have been achievable, although highly dependent on variable ocean conditions and the skill of the seafarers.
In conclusion, the successful voyage of the “Sugime” canoe provided crucial, tangible proof that the daring sea journey from Taiwan to Japan was within the capabilities of Paleolithic humans equipped with simple tools and profound knowledge of the sea, forever changing our understanding of ancient seafaring abilities.
