Earliest evidence for intentional cremation of human remains in Africa

Science Advances 2026 Open access

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Authors: Jessica I. Cerezo-Román, Elizabeth Sawchuk, Flora Schilt, Alex Bertacchi, Gina Buckley, Edwin Chibisa, B. Patrick Fahey, Sofia Gunilla Hedman Falchenberg, Potiphar Kaliba, Douglas J. Kennett, Julio Mercader, Justin Pargeter
+3 more Jay Stock, Ryan Szymanski, Jessica C. Thompson
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adz9554
Cited by: 4
References: 99

Abstract

Human cremation on an open pyre demands intensive labor, communal resources, and sensory exposures. We report the earliest evidence for intentional cremation in Africa, the oldest in situ adult pyre in the world, and one of only a few associated with hunter-gatherers. A large cremation feature at Hora 1 in Malawi dates to ~9500 years ago and contains the remains of a small, gracile adult with evidence for perimortem defleshing and postcremation manipulation. Subsequent revisiting of the site to build fires in the same place provided additional pyrotechnological spectacles. High-resolution, multiproxy reconstruction of the ritual associated with cremation and its subsequent deposition demonstrates complex mortuary practices among ancient African foraging groups with substantial social investment and use of natural landscape features as persistent mortuary monuments.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Archaeology and Rock Art Studies Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology Global Maritime and Colonial Histories

Publication details

Journal / source
Science Advances
Publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Volume
12
Issue
1
Pages
eadz9554–eadz9554
Publication date
1 January 2026
Language
EN