At a jungle-covered cave site in southwestern Sri Lanka, archaeologists have found a remarkable collection of ancient objects, including tools that they believe are among the oldest survival gear humans used in rainforests.

The artifacts range in age from 48,000 to 4,000 years old and include 130 bone arrow tips—the oldest arrow tips found outside of Africa—as well as 29 bone tools for making bags or clothing and a handful of ornamental beads. Archaeologists discovered the objects as they excavated the cave and believe they correspond to four distinct phases of human habitation of the site, with arrowheads and awl-like tools first appearing in the earliest phase. Thirty items from the site have also been dated using radiocarbon technology, allowing researchers