Fragments of iron pyrite, a rock that can be used with flint to make sparks, were found by a 400,000-year-old hearth in eastern Britain. (Jordan Mansfield | Courtesy Pathways to Ancient Britain ...

Archaeologists working in eastern England say they have uncovered the earliest known evidence of humans deliberately making fire, pushing the origin of this technology back to roughly 400,000 years ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Set aside your matches or lighter and try to start a fire—chances are you’d be left cold and hungry. But as early as 400,000 years ...

At a site called East Farm in England, recent excavations revealed reddened silt, flint handaxes distorted by heat, and fragments of a mineral—iron pyrite—that could have been used to make sparks on ...

The ability to make fire on demand has long been seen as a turning point in our evolutionary story. It unlocked benefits like cooking food, staying warm, and protection from predators. For thousands ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. An artist's impression shows sparks from flint and pyrite, in this image released on December 10, 2025. Craig Williams, The ...

It's easy to take for granted that with the flick of a lighter or the turn of a furnace knob, modern humans can conjure flames — cooking food, lighting candles or warming homes. For much of our ...