The advent of agriculture in the Neolithic era transformed human culture, giving rise to permanent settlements, social complexity, and food surpluses. Traditionally, the origins of key crops such as wheat, barley, and legumes have been traced to the Fertile Crescent about 10,000 years ago, where the Natufians harvested wild grains.

A new study, however, reveals that by at least 9,200 years ago, communities far to the north and east—in southern Uzbekistan—were also harvesting wild barley using sickle blades. This discovery expands our understanding of how widespread early agricultural behaviors were, challenging theories that farming emerged as a localized response to climate change or population pressure.

Unearthing Evidence at Toda Cave

The research, led by Xinying Zhou of the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing and conducted under the supervision of Farhad Maksudov, director of the Institute of Archaeology in Samarkand, uncovered significant finds in Toda Cave, located in Uzbekistan’s Surkandarya Valley.

Excavations yielded stone tools, charcoal, and plant remains from the site’s oldest cultural layers. Among the plant remains were wild barley, pistachio shells, and apple seeds—evidence that people were systematically exploiting local plant resources.

Traces of Early Harvesting

Archaeobotanical analysis, led by Robert Spengler of the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, showed that wild barley was being collected from the surrounding valleys. Use-wear analysis on stone blades and flakes, mostly made from limestone, indicated they had been used for cutting grasses and other plant materials—paralleling tools found at established early farming sites.

“This discovery should change the way that scientists think about the transition from foraging to farming, as it shows how widespread the transitional behaviors were,” says Xinying Zhou.

“These ancient hunters and foragers were already tied into the cultural practices that would lead to the origins of agriculture,” adds Robert Spengler. “A growing body of research suggests that domestication occurred without deliberate human intent, and the finding that people continually developed the behaviors which lead to agriculture supports this view.”

Rethinking the Origins of Farming

The findings suggest that early steps toward cultivation were not confined to the Fertile Crescent. Instead, transitional practices—such as wild grain harvesting—were more broadly distributed across Eurasia.

The team continues to investigate whether the wild barley grains from Toda Cave may represent one of two possibilities:

• An independent origin of cultivation in Central Asia using morphologically wild barley.
• An early eastward spread of farming traditions from the Fertile Crescent, occurring much earlier than previously thought.

Either explanation would significantly reshape our understanding of the path from foraging to farming in human history.

Key Highlights

• New evidence from Uzbekistan shows wild barley harvesting 9,200 years ago.
• Toda Cave excavations revealed plant remains, pistachio shells, apple seeds, and stone sickle blades.
• Stone tools show use-wear consistent with early harvesting practices.
• Discovery challenges the idea that farming emerged only in the Fertile Crescent.
• Suggests that pre-agricultural behaviors were widespread across Eurasia.

Original Publication
Authors: Xinying Zhou, Robert N. Spengler, Bahediyoh Sayfullaev, Khasanov Mutalibjon, Jian Ma, Junchi Liu, Hui Shen, Keliang Zhao, Guanhan Chen, Jian Wang, Thomas A. Stidham, Hai Xu, Guilin Zhang, Qingjiang Yang, Yemao Hou, Jiacheng Ma, Nasibillo Kambarov, Hongen Jiang, Farhod Maksudov, Steven Goldstein, Jianxin Wang, Dorian Q. Fuller and Xiaoqiang Li.
Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2424093122
Article Title: 9,000-year-old barley consumption from hill flank of Central Asia
Article Publication Date: 25-Aug-2025

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