Collecting keepsakes may have helped autobiographical memory evolve in early humans, study suggests

A new Israeli study suggests that early humans collected keepsakes as far back as half a million years ago, and that this practice may have helped drive the evolution of autobiographical memory. The study, published in Evolutionary Anthropology, examined collections of colorful pebbles, flint tools, and handaxes with fossils from prehistoric sites in northern and central Israel.

A new Israeli study suggests that early humans may have collected keepsakes as far back as half a million years ago, and that this practice may have helped drive the evolution of autobiographical memory. The study, published in the journal Evolutionary Anthropology, was led by Dr. Yoav Ram, Prof. Ran Barkai, and Dr. Ella Assaf of Tel Aviv University, along with Prof. Liad Mudrik and Dr. Bar Efrati. Researchers examined collections of objects found at prehistoric sites across northern and central Israel, including small colorful pebbles at Qesem Cave, flint tools at Qesem Cave, Revadim, and Jaljulia, and handaxes with fossils in the Sakhnin Valley. While these objects had no clear practical use, the team argues they were personal keepsakes that helped owners remember locations and experiences. The study proposes that keepsakes acted as external memory devices, and over generations, this behavior increased evolutionary pressure on brain mechanisms responsible for distinguishing firsthand memories from hearsay or imagination. The authors emphasize this is a hypothesis, not proof, but note that objects linked to memory have accompanied humans for half a million years.