The many faces of Homo Erectus

Homo Erectus skull reconstructions differ vastly from each other. Older reconstructions are more ape-like versus modern reconstructions of the same skulls.

Giving them more human features lately pushes the whole evolution agenda instead of searching for the truth.

The oldest Homo Erectus fossil

Found in Georgia, it dates back to 1.8 million years ago. It is also the most complete Homo Erectus skull ever found. It had a long face with big, chunky teeth and a small brain.

David Lordkipanidze at the Georgian National Museum, who leads the Dmanisi excavations, said: “What all this screams out for is more and better specimens. We need skeletons, more complete material, so we can look at them from head to toe,” he added. “Any time a scientist says ‘we’ve got this figured out’ they are probably wrong. It’s not the end of the story.”

1.  Can the real Turkana Boy please stand up!

Found in Africa, this specimen of Homo Erectus called Turkana Boy is well studied.  The professional facial reconstructions over the years are highly questionable.  Just compare the difference in noses for a start.

2.  Java Man

Java Man is from Indonesia.  Again, the more recent reconstructions have less ape in them. How can this be?

3.  Peking Man

Compare the faces of Peking Man from China. Do you notice the transitions over time from full ape to semi-asian…

4.  The rest of Homo Erectus

Do you have doubts about the “truth” of our origins?

Louis Leakey argued energetically that Homo Erectus populations, particularly in Africa, overlap in time with more advanced Homo Sapiens and therefore cannot be ancestral to the latter.

Some support for Leakey’s point of view has come from the analysis of anatomic characteristics exhibited by the fossils. By emphasizing a distinction between “primitive” and “derived” traits in the reconstruction of relationships between species, several palaeontologists have attempted to show that Homo Erectus does not make a suitable morphological ancestor for Homo Sapiens.

Sources:  Britannica, Wikipedia, Guardian