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| An important prehistoric site in Africa that has been instrumental in furthering the understanding of early human evolution. Occupied by homo habilis approximately 1.9 million years ago, paranthropus boisei 1.8 million years ago, and homo erectus 1.2 million years ago. Homo sapiens are dated to have occupied the site 17,000 years ago. |
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| An archeological site consisting of two rock shelters in Peyzac-le-Moustier, Dordogne, France. It is known for a fossilized skull of the species Homo neanderthalensis that was discovered in 1909. |
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| Where archaeological excavations in the nineteenth century discovered prehistoric tool sets typical of the "Acheulean" prehistorical era; sophisticated pear-shaped "hand-axes." |
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| A site in Tanzania, dated to the Plio-Pleistocene and famous for its hominid footprints, preserved in volcanic ash. The footprints showed clear evidence that bipedalism preceded enlarged brains in hominids. |
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| A cave in Beijing, China that has yielded many archaeological discoveries, including one of the first specimens of Homo erectus, dubbed Peking Man. Also showed remnants of ash, suggesting that Peking Man knew how to use fire. |
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| Earliest evidence of Hominid shelter, mostly comprised of stone, bones, and or animal bones. Germany (350kya). |
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| Located in Germany and famous for the discovery of 8 wooden throwing spears. They are the oldest completely preserved hunting weapons in the world and are regarded as the first evidence of the active hunt by Homo heidelbergensis. |
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| This Iraqi cave site was excavated in the late 1950s by an American archaeological team. Evidence found with the Neandertal skeletons suggests that the Neandertal skeletons burried their dead and possibly performed some type of burial ceremony. |
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| Early human fossils, dubbed Homo georgicus, were found at Dmanisi between 1991 and 2005. At 1.8 million years old, H. georgicus may have been a separate species of Homo, predating Homo erectus, and represent the earliest stage of human presence in the Caucasus. |
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| An extinct member of the Homo genus known from Pleistocene specimens found in Europe and parts of western and central Asia. Neanderthals are classified either as a subspecies of Homo sapiens (Homo sapiens neanderthalensis) or as a separate human species (Homo neanderthalensis). |
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| Where Homo Florensienis (nicknamed "The Hobbit") was found. |
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| A nick name for Homo Floresiensis, a hominid discovered in Flores, Indonesia. Has an extremely small brain and stood at only 3.5 feet tall. |
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| A hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England. The jawbone was that of an orangutan and the skull was that of a modern day human. Exposed as a forgery in the 1950s. |
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| AKA Australopithecus Aferensis - discovered in 1974 at Hadar in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression. Lucy is estimated to have lived 3.2 million years ago.[1][3] The discovery of this hominid was significant as the skeleton shows evidence of small skull capacity akin to that of apes and of bipedal upright walk akin to that of humans, providing further evidence supporting the view that bipedalism preceded increase in brain size in human evolution. |
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| Fossilized skull of a young australopithicus africanus; discovered in 1924 in southern Africa; was not recognized as a human ancestor upon discovery due to the Piltdown Man hoax. |
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| Nariokatome boy/Turkana boy |
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| A male, approx 7-15 yrs old. The most complete known specimen of H. erectus, and also one of the oldest, at 1.6 million years. Discovered by Kamoya Kimeu in 1984 at Nariokotome near Lake Turkana in Kenya. 5'3" tall at death. |
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| Discovered homo erectus on the Indonesian island of Java in 1891. |
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| Investigated Taung Child discovery. |
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| Used by Hominids during the Lower Paleolithic period. The Oldowan is significant for being the earliest stone tool industry in prehistory, being used from 2.6 million years ago up until 1.7 million years ago, when it was followed by the more sophisticated Acheulean industry. |
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