World’s Oldest Handbag: Decorated With Teeth Instead Of Diamonds

I’ve written about other things before that are the “world’s oldest,” and this time, just like the others, it’s a bit odd. The things that are the oldest always end up looking a little different that what I was expecting, which isn’t bad, it’s just… different. According to National Geographic, this is the world’s oldest purse, and instead of being adorned in diamonds, it’s decorated with about one hundred dog teeth.

Of course, we all know this handbag didn’t look exactly like this back in the day. After all, it’s been underground for thousands of years. Scientists say that when it was used, it was covered in fabric, but that fabric has worn away over time. All that remains are the dog teeth, which are all pointing in the same direction. They speculate that is most likely part of the handbag flap, which is surprisingly similar to the flaps we see on some handbags today.

So, if you were to guess, how old do you think this purse is? It’s older than I thought it was going to be. Excavators date it to be between 2,500 and 2,200 B.C. In some of the other nearby graves, they found dog teeth used to make jewelry like necklaces and hair pieces, so apparently dog teeth back then were kind of like what diamonds or sparkly gemstones are today. The only question I have now is, what did women carry in their handbags back then? I mean, it was obviously not lipstick, keys and an iPhone like now. Hmm…

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Via: [Incredible Things] [ecouterre] [National Geographic]