Overview:
Archaeologists have identified stitched elk-hide fragments from Oregon’s Cougar Mountain Cave and Paisley Caves that may represent the oldest known sewn clothing ever found. Dating to the end of the last Ice Age, the discovery includes bone needles and plant fiber cordage, pointing to advanced sewing skills among Late Pleistocene populations. Preserved in ultradry cave conditions, the artifacts provide rare physical evidence of early clothing production and offer new insight into how humans adapted to cold environments in North America.
Archaeologists have identified what may be the oldest sewn clothing ever found, dating to about 12,000 years ago at the end of the last Ice Age. This oldest sewn clothing discovery sheds new light on Late Pleistocene clothing and perishable material technologies in North America.
The discovery’s significance lies in two small elk-skin fragments found among organic artifacts in Oregon’s Cougar Mountain Cave and Paisley Caves. The artifacts date to 11,700–12,600 years ago. This period was the cold Younger Dryas at the end of the Ice Age.
Unlike draped hides, these fragments show clear stitching. This suggests they were sewn with fiber cord using eyed bone needles from the same assemblage. Moreover, this combination of hide, cordage, and tools points to deliberate garment construction rather than incidental use of animal skins.
What the Artifacts Reveal About Early Clothing Technology
An international team reanalyzed Oregon cave artifacts using radiocarbon dating and other methods. Through this process, they identified the oldest sewn clothing discovery. In Science Advances, the authors report perishable objects from at least 15 plant and animal taxa. These include the oldest known sewn hide remains.
Because hide and fiber decay quickly, prehistoric sewn items—especially from the Late Pleistocene—are exceptionally rare. In fact, organic artifacts from this era survive only in rare settings like Oregon’s ultradry caves. These conditions preserved cordage, wooden tools, and stitched hide.
Researchers also found finely crafted eyed bone needles—among the best known from Pleistocene North America. These discoveries point to advanced sewing skills and specialized toolmaking.
Illustrative image of an animal bone. Bone materials were commonly used in prehistoric toolmaking, including eyed needles associated with early sewing technologies.
Credit: “Designed by Freepik.” https://www.freepik.com/
Clothing or Something Else? Interpreting the Evidence
Although the stitched hides are considered to be clothing or footwear, it is noted that their specific use is not clear. The hides could have been from a fitted garment, moccasin, bag, container, or shelter cover.
Well-made stitches, along with bone needles and cordage, strongly suggest intentional tailoring rather than incidental sewing.
As the authors of the Science Advances study note: “The sparse material record of those myriad technologies limits our ability to formulate nuanced models about this critical period in human history…” — Complex perishable technologies from the North American Great Basin reveal specialized Late Pleistocene adaptations.
The scarcity of surviving perishable clothing materials has long obscured how early humans clothed themselves and coped with climate stress. These Oregon finds help fill that gap.
Why This Discovery Matters
Clothing evidence that dates back further than 10,000 years is difficult to find because raw hide, fibers, and cloth do not survive well in the archaeological record. The majority of clothing evidence has been found through indirect means such as bone needles, hide-worn tools, and artwork.
The items could be among the oldest evidence of tailored cold-weather clothing in North America.
This discovery also matches the global pattern of ancient innovation in clothing. Discoveries such as the Eurasian clothing artifacts and the ancient bone needles indicate that humans were testing the use of sewn clothing much earlier than previously believed.
Putting it in Context: Older Clothing Evidence Elsewhere
Comparative examples from other parts of the world illustrate how rare such early physical textile evidence can be. In Egypt, the Tarkhan Dress—dated to about 3482–3102 BCE—is the oldest known woven garment ever recovered. The woven linen Tarkhan Dress is over 5,000 years old, but still far younger than the Oregon hides.
At the UCL Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, the Tarkhan Dress illustrates both early woven clothing and the fragility of textile survival. As the museum’s curator noted at the time of its confirmation, “the survival of highly perishable textiles in the archaeological record is exceptional…” — a poignant reminder of why finds like Oregon’s sewn hide fragments are so remarkable.
Illustrative view from a cave or rock opening. The image does not depict the Oregon cave sites discussed in this article.
“Designed by Freepik” https://www.freepik.com/
Looking Ahead: What This Means for Archaeology
Because soft materials usually deteriorate, most prehistoric clothing has been inferred by archaeologists rather than observed. But the Oregon hide fragments, bone needles, and plant fiber cordage provide a rare direct observation of clothing production by early humans.
Preserving sewn hide, cordage, and bone needles together, the Oregon cave assemblage marks the oldest known sewn clothing discovery. It also encourages renewed analysis of perishable Ice Age materials worldwide.
The find spurs archaeologists to look again at what is already in their collections and examine perishable materials in depth, where preservation is possible. This type of research indicates that early humans were more than just survivors, but also innovators. In learning to survive in different environments, they developed tools such as sewn clothing.
Sources:
UCL News— “UCL Petrie Museum’s Tarkhan Dress: world’s oldest woven garment”
Editor’s Disclaimer:
This article is based on peer-reviewed archaeological research and reflects current scholarly interpretations of perishable materials recovered from Late Pleistocene sites in Oregon. Because organic artifacts such as hide, fiber, and textiles rarely survive in the archaeological record, conclusions about function and use remain subject to ongoing analysis. Dates, interpretations, and classifications cited here reflect the consensus of the researchers at the time of publication and may be refined as new evidence emerges.
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