1,295 shares A bone fragment discovered near Ramle, Israel with deliberate etchings on that may be the earliest-known use of symbols. (Marion Prévost) Six lines carved on a 120,000-year-old bone fragment found in central Israel could be one of the earliest known uses of symbols found on Earth, if not the first, according to Israeli and French researchers. The bone fragment, found recently during an excavation near the city of Ramle, has six similar etchings on one side of the bone, leading researchers to conclude that they were deliberately carved symbols, according to a joint statement from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Haifa University released Wednesday.