http://www.newsweek.com/geology-sahara-life-earth-desert-biological-pigments-shale-rock-1015697

Scientists have discovered the oldest intact biological colors on Earth, according to research published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

An international team led by researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) extracted 1.1-billion-year-old bright pink pigments from ancient rocks deep below the Sahara Desert in Mauritania, West Africa.