Prehistory
| Part of a series on the |
| History of Eritrea |
|---|
| Pre-colonial |
| Kingdom of Punt Kingdom of Dəmot Aksumite Empire Kingdom of Midri Bahri Eyalet-i Habeş Khedivate of Egypt |
| Colonial |
| Italian Eritrea Italian East Africa World War II British Eritrea |
| Post-colonial |
| Federation with Ethiopia Ethiopian Annexation Eritrean War of Independence |
| State of Eritrea |
| 1990s in Eritrea Eritrean–Ethiopian War 2000s in Eritrea 2010s in Eritrea |
| Eritrea portal |
In 1995, one of the oldest hominids, representing a possible link between Homo erectus and an archaic Homo sapiens was found in Buya, Eritrea by Italian scientists dated to over 1 million years old (the oldest of its kind), providing a link between hominids and the earliest humans. It is also believed that Eritrea was on the route out of Africa that was used by early man to colonize the rest of the Old World.
The Eritrean Research Project Team composed of Eritrean, Canadian, American, Dutch and French scientists, discovered in 1999 a site with stone and obsidian tools dated to over 125 000 years old (from the paleolithic) era near the Bay of Zula south of Massawa along the Red Sea coast. The tools are believed to have been used by early humans to harvest marine resources like clams and oysters. It is believed that the Eritrean section of the Danakil Depression was a major player in terms of human evolution and may "document the entire evolution of Homo erectus up to the transition to anatomically modern humans."
Cave paintings in central and northwestern Eritrea were also discovered by Italian colonialists indicating a population of hunter gatherers from the Epipaleolithic era in the region.
Read more about this topic: History Of Eritrea