Molecular Analysis Reveals the Oldest Denisovan Fossils Yet
Denisova Cave has yielded new Denisovan remains associated with archaeological artifacts in its lowermost layers dating to 200,000 years ago
An international team, led by researchers from the Universities of Vienna and Tübingen, and the Max Planck Society, has identified five new human fossils from the key site of Denisova Cave in southern Siberia. The remains, which include three Denisovans and one Neanderthal, were found in a secure and well dated around 200,000-year-old context. Surrounded by archaeological remains such as stone tools and food refuse, the finds shed light on the adaptation strategies of these early hominins as they spread across Eurasia.
Publication: Samantha Brown, et al., The earliest Denisovans and their cultural adaptation, Nature Ecology & Evolution (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-021-01581-2
Original Story Source: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology
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