Paleontology news

Archeologists find 'remarkable' Neolithic wooden door as old as Stonehenge at site of planned car park in Zurich.

The ancient poplar wood door is "solid and elegant" with well-preserved hinges and a "remarkable" design for holding the boards together, archaeologist Niels Bleicher said today.

Using tree rings to determine its age, Bleicher believes the door could have been made in 3,063BC, just as construction on Stonehenge began.

"The door is very remarkable because of the way the planks were held together," he told the Associated Press.

Harsh climatic conditions at the time meant people had to build solid houses that would keep out much of the cold wind that blew across Lake Zurich, and the door would have helped, Bleicher said. "It's a clever design that even looks good."

The door was part of a settlement of so-called "stilt houses" frequently found near lakes about a thousand years after agriculture and animal husbandry were first introduced to the pre-Alpine region.

It is similar to a door found in nearby Pfaeffikon, while a third – made from one solid piece of wood – is believed to be even older, possibly 3,700BC, said Bleicher.

The latest door was found at the dig for what is intended to be a new underground car park for Zurich's opera house.

Archaeologists have found traces of at least five Neolithic villages believed to have existed at the site between 3,700 and 2,500 years BC, including objects such as a flint dagger from what is now Italy and an elaborate hunting bow.

guardian.co.uk