300,000-year-old hearth found

Humans, by most estimates, discovered fire over a million years ago. But when did they really begin to control fire and use it for their daily needs? That question -- one which is central to the subject of the rise of human culture -- is still hotly debated. A team of Israeli scientists recently discovered in the Qesem Cave, an archaeological site near present-day Rosh Ha'ayin, the earliest evidence -- dating to around 300,000 years ago -- of unequivocal repeated fire building over a continuous period. These findings not only help answer the question, they hint that those prehistoric humans already had a highly advanced social structure and intellectual capacity.

Read more : http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140127101236.htm

Date : January 27,2014
Source : Weizmann Institute of Science
 

How many years since Fu Xi ?

According to two ancient books:

from the book of The Lie Zi ( chapter 7: Yang Chu《列子·楊朱》) :

" Certainly, it is difficult to record how many years from the ancient times to now, however, since Fu Xi, now it have been more than 300,000 years".

and, from " Yi Wei Bian Zhong Bei " 《易緯辨終備》, written by Zheng Xuan 鄭玄 (127-200) in Han dynasty, (Emperor Shun of Han 漢順帝, Yonghe 136 永和元年) :

" it have been 493,989 years since Fu Xi."

The Early Heaven and Later Heaven Diagrams

The Later Heaven 8 Trigrams

Fu Xi

Fu Xi, ( Chinese : 伏羲, 庖羲, 宓羲 ) , said to be occurred around 29th century BCE, is respected as the first emperor in ancient China. According to the ancient legend, he was born in a land at the far northwest part of China, now known as Tianhsui at Gansu province. 

There is also a legend which spreads among the southwest part of China, the Yao, the Hmong, the Kam and Yi or Lolo people, from their legends it said that Fu Xi has married Nuwa, who was his sister and they became the first ancestor of the Chinese people. However, such legend only occurred after the Han dynasty, and before that time, Fu Xi and Nuwa did not have any relation.