The first dauntless humankind to sail the sea blue may have predated the emergence ofHomo sapiens , according to a fresh analysis of shorelines within the Central Aegean Island Chain ( CAIC ) . Previously , it had been take up that ourancient ancestorsreached thesepicturesque islandsvia land bridges , yet the study authors suggest that no such walkway existed when archaic hominid first hop between the isles .

Despite the fact that sailing ask serious brainpower , grounds from across the globe indicates thatextinct human speciesmay have had both the mind and the minerals to conquer the ocean . For case , the first hominid are roll in the hay to have reach the Philippines by around 700,000 year ago and Flores Island in Indonesia as too soon as a million year ago – well before modern man existed .

Exactly which mintage of human first took to the water system , however , is still something of a mystery story .

To supply newfangled insights into our maritime heritage , the survey author turn their attention to the Cyclades archipelago in the Aegean Sea . artifact on island such Milos have been dated to around half a million yr ago , signal that archaic humans had already reached theGreek Islandsby this time .

Until now , scientists had generally agreed that these ancient hominids probably arrived on invertebrate foot during global glaciations , when ocean levels drop and the island became connected to the Eurasiatic mainland . Challenging this theory , the researcher analyzed sea level markers in river delta across the CAIC , and ground that during the ice ages , ocean levels fluctuated between 152 and 225 meters ( 499 and 738 invertebrate foot ) below their current values .

At nowadays , the Ikaria stretch of the Aegean Sea is 355 meters ( 1,165 feet ) deep , while the Myrtoon reach is 456 cadence ( 1,496 ) deep . In fact , the entire Aegean is deep enough to have remained a roadblock to walker even when sea levels were at their lowest point 450,000 years ago .

Based on this determination , the authors reason out that the Cyclades Archipelago was completely cut off from the mainland at this fourth dimension , and that any human beings who inhabit the island could only have come by crossing the sea .

“ The insularity of the island over the CAIC … in conjunction with the time and space statistical distribution of Lower Paleolithic ( LP ) and Middle Paleolithic ( MP ) sites in the Cyclades Islands and in the wider area supply evidence that the hominins had to cross sea - straits to pass on the Cyclades Archipelago , ” they write .

Taking a closer look at the arrangement of islands , the researcher indicate out that their proximity to one another mean that each can be seen with the nude oculus from the neighboring speck of land , “ thus providing the perception of easy availableness . ”

“ Such a land / seascape created an ideal maritime ‘ greenhouse ’ environment for hominins to try ocean - crossing , ” they say . The temptation to hop from one island to the next may therefore have “ motivated the antediluvian hominin to develop the necessary cognitive capableness such as spatial cognisance , way - rule strategy and sea - craft construction . ”

While the investigator ca n’t say which human coinage first learned to voyage , they point out that the remains of several different extinct hominid have been found dotted around the Graeco-Roman peninsula . In accordance with this grounds , the cogitation authors speculate that “ the CAIC could have been used byH. erectus , H. heidelbergensisand earlyH. Neanderthalensisas a ocean route . ”

More broadly speaking , these findings paint a picture that our ancient ascendent may have sailed as well as walked out of Africa , spoil the Gibraltar Straits as well as the Aegean in parliamentary law to attain Eurasia .

The research has been published in the journalQuaternary International .