An international team of scientists has unveiled the first complete virtual reconstruction of a 1.5-million-year-old human ancestor’s face. The fossil, known as DAN5, belongs to the species Homo erectus and was discovered in the Gona region of Ethiopia’s Afar Triangle.
This reconstruction is being hailed as a milestone because it provides the most complete look at an Early Pleistocene hominin cranium ever recovered from the Horn of Africa.
Key Findings of the Study
- Archaic Features: While the braincase of the DAN5 fossil is typical of Homo erectus, the new facial reconstruction revealed surprisingly primitive features. It has a flat nasal bridge and large molar teeth, traits more commonly associated with much older human ancestors like Homo habilis.
- A Complex Migration Story: The archaic appearance of DAN5 suggests that early populations of Homo erectus in Africa were more physically diverse than previously thought. Scientists believe this specific population may have retained the anatomy of an ancestor that lived 300,000 years earlier.
- Refuting the “Return to Africa” Theory: For years, some scientists theorized that Homo erectus evolved in Asia and then migrated back to Africa. However, the presence of these transitional, “mosaic” features in an African fossil reinforces the theory that the species originated and evolved within the African continent.
- Behavioral Sophistication: Remarkably, the DAN5 individual was found alongside both simple Oldowan stone tools and more advanced Acheulean handaxes. This suggests that these early humans were highly adaptable, using multiple tool technologies simultaneously.
The Science Behind the Reconstruction
The reconstruction was led by Dr. Karen Baab of Midwestern University. Because the fossil was originally found in several major fragments, the team used high-resolution micro-CT scans to create 3D digital models of the pieces.
Over the course of a year, researchers painstakingly reassembled the “3D puzzle,” fitting the teeth into the jaw and attaching the face to the previously known braincase (first described in 2020) to create the nearly complete skull seen in today’s headlines.
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