Six thousand years is a long time to wait to be known.

But they are known now.

And the search for the rest of their story has only just begun.

Why This Study, Why Now

The 2025 Science Advances paper on Colombian ancient DNA did not emerge in isolation.

It emerged from a convergence of scientific capability, institutional readiness, and the growing recognition in the ancient DNA field that South America — particularly northern South America — represented an urgent priority for research.

The reasons for urgency are straightforward.