Million-year-old hominid fossils found in Spain

SPAIN: A FOSSILISED jawbone and teeth found in a cave in northern Spain may have belonged to one of the first human ancestors to set foot in western Europe.

The hominid has been identified as homo antecessor, or pioneer man, a possible ancestor of both our own species and Neanderthals. The fossils date from between 1.1 million and 1.2 million years ago.

The find helps to fill another gap in our understanding of the long march early humans made out of Africa. Stone tools and animal bones found with the hominid jaw also paint a vivid picture of the life of early cave-dwelling Europeans. 

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times