Archaeologists estimate that humans first arrived on the Ryukyu Islands between 35,000 and 27,500 years ago. However, the route they took remains a mystery, especially considering the powerful Kuroshio current. To address this question, researchers built a replica of an ancient Japanese canoe and successfully crossed the strait between Taiwan and Yonaguni Island in around 45 hours.
Using tools from the Upper Paleolithic period, the team manufactured a 7.5-meter-long dugout canoe made from Japanese cedar wood and tested its durability and speed across the 68.4-mile-wide Kuroshio current. The experiment suggests that ancient people with advanced navigational skills could have traveled to the Ryukyu Islands tens of thousands of years ago.
The researchers used computer models to simulate what such a crossing would be like, taking into account Late Pleistocene oceanic conditions and navigational techniques used by ancient mariners. Their findings support the development of functional boats during this time period and highlight the impressive skills of prehistoric people who traversed the Pacific Ocean using rudimentary technology.
The successful voyage challenges the common perception that ancient cultures were primitive and underscores the importance of experimental archaeology in shedding light on past human endeavors. By recreating an ancient ocean voyage, the team has provided new insights into how ancient people traveled across the world’s oceans, a journey that was once thought to be impossible without modern navigation technologies.
Source: https://gizmodo.com/researchers-pit-stone-age-seafaring-skills-against-one-of-earths-fiercest-currents-2000619573