A cremation pyre about 9,500 years old has been found in northern Malawi at Mount Hora. It is the oldest known intentional cremation in Africa and the first linked to hunter-gatherers. The site contained 170 bone fragments from an adult woman about 5 feet tall, found with ash and charcoal layers during 2017-2018 digs. Her skull was missing, and some bones showed cut marks, indicating flesh removal before burning. Dr Jessica Cerezo-Román of the University of Oklahoma said, "There is no evidence to suggest that they were doing any kind of violent act or cannibalism to the remains." Instead, bones might have been removed as part of funerary rituals or taken as tokens. Dr Jessica Thompson from Yale University explained that while such rituals may seem unusual today, people still keep locks of hair or ashes. The rock shelter also served as a natural monument with burials from 16,000 to 8,000 years ago. Finds include full skeletons and small bone collections, suggesting possible removal of bones for reburial or curation. Stone flakes and points were found in the pyre, possibly used in rituals or to cut flesh, noted the researchers. The pyre was as large as a queen-sized mattress and required skill to build. Bone clusters suggest the body was moved during cremation. Later fires above the pyre hint at acts of remembrance. The shelter had signs of daily campfires, showing it was used for regular living too. Published in Science Advances, the study reveals this pyre is older than the previous oldest cremation—an 11,500-year-old child’s pyre from Alaska. Earlier African cremations were dated only to 3,500 years ago among pastoral people. Dr Thompson said, "Different people merited different treatment in death, suggesting complex social roles among ancient hunter-gatherers." Liverpool’s professor Joel Irish called the find "amazing," highlighting the advanced belief systems and social complexity of early hunter-gatherers.