Jump to content
Join the Unexplained Mysteries community today! It's free and setting up an account only takes a moment.
- Sign In or Create Account -

400,000-Year-Old Fossil Human Cranium Found


Claire.

Recommended Posts

400,000-year-old fossil human cranium is oldest ever found in Portugal.

A large international research team, directed by the Portuguese archaeologist João Zilhão and including Binghamton University anthropologist Rolf Quam, has found the oldest fossil human cranium in Portugal, marking an important contribution to knowledge of human evolution during the middle Pleistocene in Europe and to the origin of the Neandertals.

The cranium represents the westernmost human fossil ever found in Europe during the middle Pleistocene epoch and one of the earliest on this continent to be associated with the Acheulean stone tool industry. In contrast to other fossils from this same time period, many of which are poorly dated or lack a clear archaeological context, the cranium discovered in the cave of Aroeira in Portugal is well-dated to 400,000 years ago and appeared in association with abundant faunal remains and stone tools, including numerous bifaces (handaxes).

Read more: Phys.org

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Great find Claire and a great find for archaeology.  But isn't this statement a bit obvious seeing the diversity we have in facial features: "The Aroeria cranium increases the anatomical diversity in the human fossil record from this time period, suggesting different populations showed somewhat different combinations of features."

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, ShortyStuff said:

Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots.

Did you even bother to read the actual article?

Since the sediments containing the cranium at the Aroeira site were firmly cemented, the cranium was removed from the site in a large, solid block.

Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-03-year-old-fossil-human-cranium-oldest.html#jCp"

In other words it was not something loose on the ground! It was covered! And since scientists know the average rate of sediment deposit growth they can calculate an estimated age of the fossil.

 

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, ShortyStuff said:

Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots.

Sorry, does it really not occur to you that they'd have thought of that? That in fact that would be completely obvious to anyone, anyone at all, let alone people who do this professionally? 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, godnodog said:

In other words it was not something loose on the ground! It was covered! And since scientists know the average rate of sediment deposit growth they can calculate an estimated age of the fossil.

 

Yes, it's as if they know what they're ding isn't it. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

What an awesome find, i just looked at the  pics of it and the tools also very cool

Edited by coolguy
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

that is nick nolte

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

40 minutes ago, qxcontinuum said:

that is nick nolte

What pray tell does a 400,000 year old fossil human cranium have to do with Nick Nolte qx ? :rolleyes:

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 hours ago, Astra. said:

What pray tell does a 400,000 year old fossil human cranium have to do with Nick Nolte qx ? :rolleyes:

 

maybe genetics ... :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, qxcontinuum said:

maybe genetics ... :)

Ok - apart from that little wise-guy crack.....why Nick Nolte ?...which btw, came out of left field.

Just trying to figure out how you sometimes tick qx.. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

he looks like Nick. Really nobody sees the resemblance ? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.