As we all know by now, as a species, we humans have always loved our ornaments. Whether we’re talking bracelets, earrings, rings, or necklaces, we have always been obsessed with shiny rocks, to say the least.
Whether we choose gold, platinum, or silver, we always seem to make our choice based on which suits us better, and ancient civilizations weren’t that different either.
Nowadays we associate diamond rings with engagement, and we even go as far as to decorate our pets with them in some cases. There is an ongoing trend that even has people embroiling their bodies with precious stones of all things.
You might think that’s strange, but it goes way stranger than that. Take for example the oldest jewelry known to man which dates back to over 100,000 years ago.
Made out of seashells, they were originally discovered in the 1930s and they are made out of what appears to be swollen nassa, a type of a sea snail that originates from the mollusk family.
Experts believe that they are anywhere between 100,000 to 135,000 years old by now and that they were mostly used as currency in ancient times.
Ancient civilizations that migrated to Europe and Asia had an affinity for ornaments made out of animals, bones, and ivory strung on animal sinew, but since shells were so common at the time, they became instantly popular with them too.
But that’s not all, as what appears to be a carved shell pendant was originally discovered in North Yorkshire, England, back in 2015. It is considered to be the oldest Mesolithic art found in the British Isles, and according to most experts, it dates back to 11,000 BC.
