Researchers defend older age of key archaeological site in Chile

Researchers are debating whether Chile’s Monte Verde site is about 14,500 years old or much younger—a dispute that could change ideas about when people first reached the Americas.
The site preserves rare items—footprints, wooden tools, hearths, potatoes and seaweed—offering a vivid snapshot of Ice Age hunter‑gatherer life.
The original team strongly defends its dating and accuses the newer study of flawed geology, while the latter welcomes scrutiny and calls for more independent research.