Archaeologica.org

Earliest evidence of tar used as waterproofing material was found in Veracruz and is more than 3,500 years old. Olmeca cultures that inhabited the Gulf of Mexico vicinity used it to protect soil, terracotta or wooden constructions, floor and wall covering, boat sealant, as well as glue.



Earliest remains of containers with tar are those recovered in the municipality of Hidalgotitlan, Veracruz, as part of El Manati archaeological project. Containers found by INAH archaeologists may have been used to heat up tar.

Minimalist wrote:http://dti.inah.gob.mx/index.php?option ... Itemid=150

Earliest evidence of tar used as waterproofing material was found in Veracruz and is more than 3,500 years old. Olmeca cultures that inhabited the Gulf of Mexico vicinity used it to protect soil, terracotta or wooden constructions, floor and wall covering, boat sealant, as well as glue.



Earliest remains of containers with tar are those recovered in the municipality of Hidalgotitlan, Veracruz, as part of El Manati archaeological project. Containers found by INAH archaeologists may have been used to heat up tar.

Presumably this is naturally occurring tar?

Venezuelan oil workers recently uncovered an ancient tar pit containing a palaeontologist’s dream: fossils that show what the environment may have been like when North and South America became reconnected. The fossils include those of a type of sabre-toothed cat never before found in South America, The Press Association reports.

Minimalist wrote:http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/mammal/car ... tooth.html

They do seem to be quite cat-like.