Early Man Skulls

Australopithecus afarensis lived between 4 million and 3.2 million years ago in eastern Africa. This species was short and stocky in appearance with hands and feet more similar to apes than modern humans. Perhaps the best known specimen of af..

Discovered in 1970 by Richard Leaky and H. Mutua at Koobi Fora in Kenya, this female Australopithecus boisei skull, designated KNM ER-732, dates back to 1.7 MYA. It differs from other A. boisei skull finds in that it lacks both the sagittal and..

Australopithecus robustus SK-54 Juvenile cranium section, dated at 1.5 million years, was discovered in 1949 Swartkrans, South Africa by Robert Broom and J.T. Robinson. This juvenile calotte (skull cap) possesses two 6mm puncture wounds close t..

Skull Atapuerca 5 was discovered in 1992, by Juan-Luis Arsuaga, in caves of Sima de los Huesos, Sierra de Atapuerca, Spain. This nearly complete Homo heidelbergensis skull has the heavy browridges, wide nasal opening, and large, projecting middle fa..

Australopithecus aethiopicus, widely thought to be the ancestor of A. robustus and A. boisei, is considered to be the link between A. afarensis and A. boisei. The most well known of the few fossil finds of this species is the famous KNM-WT 1700, or ..

This Homo heidelbergensis skull was discovered by Asfaw, Whitehead and Wood in 1976 in Bodo D'ar, Ethiopia. Its estimated age places it as a contemporary of Homo erectus; however, its combination of features positions it as a transitional fossil. Wi..

Dating from 1.8 mya this Homo erectus skull, found in Dmanisi, Georgia, has a surprisingly small brain capacity. It is one of several individuals found in 1999 by Abesalom Vekua. Oldowan-like tools were also found a the site, suggesting these homini..

The Gibraltar Skull which was blasted out of Forbes’ Quarry on the North Face of the Rock of Gibraltar, was the first Neanderthal skull discovered. This reconstruction is one of the best examples of a female neanderthal in existence. This find..

Gigantopithecus is believed to be the largest primate to have ever lived. Although quadrapedial, when standing on it's hind limbs, Gigantopithecus would have stood nearly ten foot tall and weighed around 1200 lbs. This prehistoric relative of modern..

Dating in excess of 800,000 years, this species represents the earliest known European hominids. This specimen was discovered in 1994 by J.L. Arsuaga at the Gran Dolina site in Spain. Another interesting feature of this specimen is that it represent..

Discovered in 2003 on the island of Flores, Indonesia, this skull represents a small hominid that grew no larger than a modern child 3' (1 m). H. floresiensis lived in isolation with dwarf elephants and komodo dragons. Evolutionary island isolation ..

This small, but very complete skull was found at Koobi Fora, Kenya, in 1973 by Kamoya Kimeu. It dates back to 1.9 MYA and is considered an early member of the Homo genus. It's minute brain capacity, however, leads many to place it within the Austral..

KNM-WT-40000 Discovered by Meave Leakey and her team in 1998 west of Lake Turkana, Kenya, K. platyops is described in the March 2001 issue of Nature as a new genus dating back to the middle Pliocene, 3.5 MYA., challenging A. afarensis “Lucy&rd..

First discovered in Koobi Fora, Kenya is 1972, Homo rudolphensis has consistently been the subject for debate. Many anthropologists believe this specimen to belong to the Australopithecine genus while some favor Homo habilis as its species. There ar..

This Homo ergaster skull, designated as KNM-ER 3733, was discovered by B. Ngeneo in Koobi Fora, Kenya in 1975. It is a very complete example of a adult female and dates back to 1.75 million years ago...

La Ferassie 1- The La Ferassie skull, discovered in France in 1909, is considered to be the "classic Neanderthal" representative. It has the low, long cranial vault, weak chin and double brow ridges indicative of this species. This skull d..

Lucy is, quite possibly, the most well-known fossil hominid. Discovered by Donald Johanson and Tom Gray in 1974 at Hadar, Ethiopia, Lucy is dated at 3.2 million years old. This specimen, a 40% complete skeleton of an adult female, gave sufficient ev..

The Mrs. Ples. skull, designated STS 5, was discovered by Robert Broom and John T. Robinson in Sterkfontein, Transvaal, South Africa in 1947. Although originally considered female, study of the roots of the canine teeth has cast serious doubt on it'..

The Mrs. Ples. skull, designated STS 5, was discovered by Robert Broom and John T. Robinson in Sterkfontein, Transvaal, South Africa in 1947. Although originally considered female, study of the roots of the canine teeth has cast serious doubt on it'..

The Homo ergaster Skull KNM-WT 15000 known as the Nariokotome Boy was discovered by K. Kimeu in 1984 in Nariokotome, Kenya. It is from an approximately 13 year old boy and dates back to 1.6 million years ago...

Found by Peter Nzube in 1968 and dating back to 1.8 MYA, OH-24 is the oldest skull discovered at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. It combines the larger brain and smaller facial features common to early specimens assigned to the genus Homo...

Proconsul existed between 14 and 23 million years ago during the Miocene epoch. This species is one of the better represented early Hominid species due to the numerous specimens that have been excavated. This specimen is based on the 1948 Leaky disc..

Recently discovered in Chad, Sahelanthropus tchadensis is aged at 6 to 7 million years old. This new hominid species, nicknamed Toumai, has caused great debate among scientist since this specimen appears to be more human-like than any other known fo..

Discovered in 1969 by Mr. Towikromo, the Sangiran 17 skull dates back more than 1 MYA. This low, long cranium with it's large brow ridges was found in Java, Indonesia and is still considered one of the most complete hominid skulls from Asia...

At first glance, Sivapithecus appears to be very similar to modern orangutans. However, recent study of postcranial remains as well as dentition suggests a hominid relation. This specimen was discovered in 1979 in Pakistan...