Antiquity of Homo sapiens in China (original) (raw)

Nature volume 368, pages 55–56 (1994)Cite this article

Abstract

TEN years ago a well-preserved skull of an early form of Homo sapiens was unearthed from Pleistocene cave deposits at the Jinniushan site in China. Here we present electron-spin resonance (ESR) and uranium-series dates from five fossil animal teeth collected from the hominid locality. The minimum ESR ages (195–165 kyr) are about 50 kyr younger than the uranium-series dates. Taken together, the results suggest an age of about 200 kyr or older for the Jinniushan skull, making it among the oldest H. sapiens material found in China, and almost as old as some of the latest Chinese H. erectus. This raises the possibility of the coexistence of the two species in China. The morphology of the skull suggests a strong local component of evolution, consonant with the 'multi-regional continuity' model of the evolution of H. sapiens.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Archaeology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China
    Chen Tiemei & Yang Quan
  2. Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China
    Wu En

Authors

  1. Chen Tiemei
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  2. Yang Quan
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  3. Wu En
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Tiemei, C., Quan, Y. & En, W. Antiquity of Homo sapiens in China.Nature 368, 55–56 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/368055a0

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