Israeli scientists have found the earliest evidence for modern man, in teeth at Qesem Cave not far from Tel Aviv.
Instead of 200,000 years of history in Africa, Homo sapiens are looking at 400,000 with early sources in the holy land. This news is just in from teeth located and dated by Israeli scientists in Qesem Cave, a prehistory site not far from the city of Tel Aviv. Just last week Susan covered the news of a hidden ancient Persian Gulf city that could rewrite history. Now Israeli scientists have revealed teeth – 8 of them – that shows how early Homo sapiens, as we know them (and ourselves), could be twice as old.
This could be a game-changer for the way we understand anthropology, archeology and humans in modern history. It could also put some issues related to global warming in the Middle East into a different perspective.
The features in the teeth bear a strong resemblance or “stronger affinity” the researchers say to to Homo sapiens, in a report submitted to the American Journal of Physical Anthropology.
One possibility is the teeth belong to an ancient, direct ancestor of early humans that developed independently of others in Africa and Europe, said Rolf M. Quam, a professor of anthropology at the State University of New York at Binghamton.
The researchers say the discoveries made in the Qesem Cave may change the notion that has been widely accepted to date in which modern man originated on the continent of Africa. They said further research was needed to solidify their claim but if proven it “changes the whole picture of evolution”.
According to the Jerusalem Post:
“The examination included CT scans and X-rays indicating the size and shape of the teeth are very similar to those of modern man. The teeth found in the cave are also very similar to evidence of modern man dated to around 100,000 years ago that had previously been discovered in the Skhul Cave on Mount Carmeland the Qafzeh Cave in the Lower Galilee nearNazareth.
“The Qesem Cave is dated between 400,000 and 200,000 years ago, and archeologists working there believe that the findings indicate significant changes in the behavior of ancient man.”
@Matthew: You don’t know what a theory is, do you?…
To Jonathan and other unscientific people I’ve read, the origins of man from Africa is a theory. As with the ‘theory’ of evolution, these things can be changed very quickly.
If you notice, anyone who tries actual science beyond the rigid dogma of the origins and evolution is instantly dismissed as wrong. No science for them.
It’s been published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal – a good one, the American Journal of Physical Anthropology. That means experts in the field have reviewed it, commented on it and have decided the research is worthy of publicizing. That’s not talk. And since us humans have already evolved, we’re probably not going to go anywhere new. What it changes is how we perceive our development in a new time frame. That could be the game-changer. The more we dig the more we will find.
Perhaps we should wait a little while for a sober interpretation of the evidence and some confirmation of the numbers before going off half-cocked with a lot of “game-changing” talk. That’s promotion, not science. Please stop giving science a bad name… There is more irony to be unearthed here than history, so far.