Archaeologists say they have found the oldest known instance of fire setting, a key moment in human evolution.

Some 400,000 years ago, in what is now eastern England, a group of Neanderthals used flint and pyrite to make fires by a watering hole — not just once, but time after time, over several generations.

The earlier timeline for fire-making could mean it played a major role in key evolutionary milestones like language development and climate adaptability.