A Barbecue Rib Roast for the Ages

Archaeologists have recently uncovered what may be the world's earliest-known barbecue pit at 29,000 years old. And what was on the specials board at that time? Mammoth.While it's important to avoid suggesting that The Flintstones might be considered a documentary, it turns out that that sight gag in the closing credits with the giant rack of ribs tipping over the car may have some basis in reality. (Car with driver's feet braking system excluded).The site, located in the Czech Republic near the borders with Slovakia and Austria, features a large pit within which meat was cooked underground. Rounded stones used for the distribution of heat during cooking, as well as some very, very large mammoth bones have been found in the site. While early human population in this area of Europe are known to have subsisted on smaller species such as reindeer, it's clear that those who once inhabited this particular site had a marked taste for the biggest of big game.  It remains completely unknown if they knew how to take small bites, and to chew thoroughly and carefully before swallowing.