Scientists have made a discovery that could force us to reconsider the history of human evolution
Scientists have made a discovery that may force a review of the history of human evolution: a sunken city has been found at the bottom of the ocean near the coast of Indonesia, the age of which reaches 140,000 years. The publication writes about it Daily Mail.
In the Strait of Madura between the islands of Java and Madura, under layers of silt and sand, archaeologists discovered the skull of Homo erectus, an ancient human ancestor. It was found more than 140,000 years after being buried. Researchers believe the find is potentially the first physical evidence of a lost world of prehistoric land known as Sundaland. Once upon a time, this massif of land connected Southeast Asia and was a large tropical plain. Along with the skull, about 6,000 animal fossils of 36 species were found in this sunken city, including Komodo dragons, buffaloes, deer and elephants.
Some of the animal remains have been found to have cuts that are most likely to have been made intentionally, which may indicate that early humans used advanced hunting strategies. These findings offer a glimpse into ancient human history, exploring the long-flooded lands of Sundaland and how early human populations adapted to environmental changes.
The skull, which had been buried in the mud for 140,000 years, was only recently identified as belonging to Homo erectus. These fossils were first discovered back in 2011 by workers extracting sea sand, but only recently have scientists been able to accurately date them and determine who they belong to. This became an important event for paleontology.
As explained by the leader of the study, archaeologist Harold Berghuis of Leiden University in the Netherlands, this period in the history of hominins in the region was marked by great morphological diversity and high mobility of human populations.
Between 14,000 and 7,000 years ago, melting glaciers caused the global sea level to rise by 120 meters, flooding the Sundaland plains. Now, thanks to the remains preserved in the mud, scientists can study that world in detail.
Analyzing the layers of sedimentary rock where the fossils were found, the researchers discovered a whole system of ancient river valleys, including the Solok River, which once crossed the now-submerged Zonda shelf. The sediments indicate the existence of a fluvial ecosystem that flourished at the end of the Middle Pleistocene.
Along with the skull, thousands of animal fossils were found, including Komodo dragons, buffalo, deer and elephants. All of them help to reconstruct the living environment of that time. Homo erectus, represented by the found skull, is considered an important milestone in the history of human evolution. They were the first hominids, whose physiology resembled modern humans: tall, muscular, with long legs and shorter arms.
During the study, scientists used optically stimulated luminescence on quartz grains, which allowed to establish the moment of the last sunlight hitting these deposits. Thus, it was determined that the age of the findings ranges from 162,000 to 119,000 years.
Two fragments of the skull – the frontal and parietal bones – were compared with the known remains of Homo erectus from the Sambungmakan site on the island of Java. The similarity confirmed the bones belonging to Homo erectus and extended the known distribution limits of this species.
The study provides for the first time direct evidence of the presence of ancient human ancestors in landscapes that are now flooded. It challenges previous ideas about the geography of Homo erectus settlement and highlights the importance of flooded areas in the study of human evolution and migrations throughout Southeast Asia.
