Ice Age Child’s Remains Found in AK

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of a 3-year-old child from the Ice Age, the oldest cremated human remains ever discovered in North America. The discoverers dated the child’s death to 11,500 years ago, according to research by the University of Fairbanks’ Ben Potter and his team. Potter said they found the remains in a fire pit that dates back 13,200 years, and the discovery came on the last day of the excavation. Researchers are hoping the remains will help them learn more about early North American residents—they said the child’s teeth had traits of both North America and Asia. Researchers named the child Xaasaa Cheege Ts’eniin, which is associated with the Native place name Xaasaa Na and means “Upper Sun River Mouth Child.”