18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

1.5 Million-Year-Old Hand Axes and Seven Paleolithic Sites Discovered in Iraq’s Western Desert

Archaeologists from the Free University of Brussels (VUB) uncovered hand axes dating back 1.5 million years and discovered seven Paleolithic sites in an area of 10 by 20 km in Iraq’s Western Desert.

Ella Egberts, a researcher from VUB (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), traveled to Iraq in November and December as part of a pilot project aimed at searching for archaeological surface materials in the Al-Shabakah area. 

These materials are intended to provide insights into the Iraqi Western Desert’s geomorphological history and explore the potential for preserving archaeological sites with Old and Middle Paleolithic artifacts. Egberts confirmed that the campaign was a great success

“The targeted fieldwork resulted in the discovery of seven Paleolithic sites in an area of 10 by 20 km,” Egberts stated. “One location was selected for a systematic study to determine the spatial distribution of the Paleolithic material and to conduct preliminary technological and typological analyses.”

The prospecting campaign focused on an area that housed a large lake during the Pleistocene, which is now completely dried up, with ancient wadis or dry riverbeds crossing the landscape. Egberts collected over 850 artifacts, ranging from very old hand axes from the Early or Old Paleolithic to Levallois reduction flakes from the Middle Paleolithic, all surface materials. 

“The other sites also deserve equally thorough systematic investigation, which will undoubtedly yield similar quantities of lithic material,” she added.

One of the scientific research discovered hand tools, with many stone tools and production residues visible on the surface in the background, Iraqi desert. Credit: University of Brussels
One of the scientific research discovered hand tools, with many stone tools and production residues visible on the surface in the background, Iraqi desert. Credit: University of Brussels

Egberts highlighted that the distribution of the sites, along with the advancing understanding of the region’s geomorphological history, reveals emerging clues about early human landscape use. She expressed her intention to expand her research to a larger area in the future, systematically sampling all the sites and conducting in-depth technological and typological artifact analysis. The new insights gained from Iraq are expected to be integrated into the broader understanding of human evolution and behavior on the Arabian Peninsula.

Egberts’ work in Iraq also includes an educational component. An essential part of the fieldwork involved training Iraqi archaeology students in geo-archaeology and Paleolithic archaeology. Three students accompanied the team in the field, and a workshop held at Al-Qadisiyah University after the fieldwork inspired many more students and academics about the Paleolithic period in Iraq. 

At a conference in Karbala, the team shared their findings with a multidisciplinary academic audience interested in the history of the Western Desert. Additionally, they presented their results to the general public and the press at the Writers’ Union in Najaf. The team also had the opportunity to teach local elementary school children about prehistoric flint discoveries.

Egberts stated that her work in Iraq, a country often viewed as a “powder keg,” has proceeded much more smoothly than expected. She noted that, despite the presence of numerous checkpoints, the team was able to conduct their research without significant issues.

“The Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage appreciates our work and encourages us to continue,” Egberts said. She will now continue her research at VUB. “The next step will be to secure funding, with which I hope to reconstruct Pleistocene environmental changes and early human presence and behavior in the Western Desert.”

Her mission was funded by the British Institute for the Study of Iraq, a grant she qualified for due to her honorary fellowship at the University of Leicester in the UK. This collaborative effort not only illuminates the rich archaeological history of Iraq but also strengthens international partnerships that enhance the understanding of human evolution and cultural heritage in the region.

Free University of Brussels (VUB)

Cover Image Credit: Free University of Brussels (VUB)

Related Articles

Christians Supplied Medieval Pagans with Horses for Sacrifice for Funeral Rituals

20 May 2024

20 May 2024

In the late medieval period, pagans in the Baltic region of northern Europe imported horses from neighboring Christian nations for...

Remains of a 3,700-year-old domed oven were discovered in the ancient city of Troy

10 September 2022

10 September 2022

Remains of a 3,700-year-old domed oven were found in the ancient city of Troy, located in the Tevfikiye district of Çanakkale...

A first in 35 years! Child grave with bracelets and gifts found in ancient city of Kelenderis

25 June 2022

25 June 2022

During this year’s excavations in the ancient city of Kelenderis, founded on the Mediterranean coast in the southern province of...

New discoveries show that Claros continued to serve as an oracle center after Christianity

14 September 2022

14 September 2022

Game boards and forked cross motifs dating to the fifth and seventh centuries AD were discovered at the ancient Greek...

A 1,100-year-old lead amulet of Bulgarian soldiers sieges Constantinople found

31 March 2023

31 March 2023

A lead plate amulet bearing an inscription in Cyrillic dating from the times of Tsar Simeon the Great was discovered...

Artificial intelligence is Detecting New Archaeological Sites in the Arabian desert

5 October 2024

5 October 2024

A team of researchers at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi has developed a machine-learning algorithm to help them trawl vast...

Archaeologists unearthed fresh evidence that bedbugs came to Britain with the Romans

3 February 2024

3 February 2024

Archaeologists working the Roman garrison site of Vindolanda in Northumberland, south of Hadrian’s Wall, have discovered new proof that the...

2900-Year-Old Erzin Stele: A Key to Understanding the Hittite to Greek Mythological Transition

5 April 2025

5 April 2025

In a significant archaeological discovery, a basalt stele was unearthed in 1987 by O. Günay while plowing his field at...

Amarna’s Hidden Chapter: From Abandoned Pharaoh’s City to Christian Monastic Hub

26 June 2025

26 June 2025

New archaeological findings have reshaped our understanding of Amarna, the once-glorious capital of ancient Egypt founded by Pharaoh Akhenaten in...

Archaeologists unearth human spines threaded onto reed posts in Peru

5 February 2022

5 February 2022

Archaeologists have found almost 192 examples of human vertebrae threaded onto reed posts 500 years ago in the Chincha Valley...

The mystery of the silver bracelets of Queen Hetepheres in her celebrated tomb at Giza solved

2 June 2023

2 June 2023

The discovery of silver bracelets in the tomb of Queen Hetepheres I, wife of Pharaoh Snofru and mother of Pharaoh...

Rare 832 copper coins from the Portuguese era unearthed in Goa, India

11 November 2023

11 November 2023

In Sattari, Nanoda, in the state of Goa on the west coast of India, 832 copper coins that are believed...

The excavations in Selinunte, Italy, which has the largest Agora in the Ancient World, “The results have gone well beyond expectations”

29 July 2022

29 July 2022

In the Selinunte, one of the most important archaeological sites of the Greek period in Italy, the outlines of the...

Will the Siloam Inscription be returned to Israel?

12 March 2022

12 March 2022

During the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog to Turkey, the claim that he wanted the Siloam Inscription, one of...

New Research Reveals Previously Unknown Aspects of the Construction, Use, and Ritual Significance of a Neolithic Rondel Found in Poland

12 December 2024

12 December 2024

An archaeological excavation at Nowe Objezierze in north-western Poland has uncovered a rondel dating to around 4800 BC, offering new...