The journal ‘Science’ published the discovery a team of scientists has made in Israel. Researchers discovered a human fossil that they estimated to be around 200,000 years old. This new finding can force scientists to revise the theories regarding humans evolution.
The discovery’s importance
Researchers discovered a jawbone in the Mount Carmel region of Israel. The remains were found in the Misliya Cave in 2002 but only after intensive research over the past 15 years, the scientists were able to say the fossil is 200,000 years old.
Scientists believed, until now, that modern human has appeared in Africa with up to 180,000 years ago and the first prove of migration outside Africa being registered to around 120,000 years ago. However, with the new discovery, scientists believe that’s needed to push back the modern human history with more than 200,000 years.
Previous discoveries
In Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, there has been discovered a 300,000 years old fossil, in 2017. However, this fossil is not as important as the fossil discovered in Misliya Cave.
The Jebel Irhoud fossil presented a skull similar to the modern human’s but the braincase showed an elongated form leading scientists into believing that it is actually a fossil of an early human. Moreover, researchers studying the Jebel Irhoud fossil theorized that the modern human evolved from Neanderthals and Denisovans with more than 500,000 years ago.
The fossil from Misliya Cave is of a higher importance as it is the oldest fossil of a modern human.
New theories emerged after the Misliya discovery
Scientists are now sure that the modern men, archaic humans, and others were living together at the same time. Moreover, researchers are sure that, eventually, a fossil even older than the Misliya one will be found in Eurasia along with Neanderthal fossils of the same age.
However, early humans history and their evolution trend are far from being complete, as many gaps are yet to be completed.