Homo Genus

The Homo genus is separated from the earlier hominids because of the emergence of tool use, language, and culture.

The genus begins about 2.3 million years ago. The characteristics of these species are bigger brain (above 1000ml), the forehead rises straight up, the skull becomes rounder, the teeth are reduced, arms are shorter and legs are longer, and the skeleton becomes more delicate.

Homo habilis / Homo rudolfensis

These species existed 2.3-1.6 million years ago. They were found in Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, and China. These hominids are considered the first tool users. They used tools that were chips of rock called Oldowan tools.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 630ml

• smaller back teeth

• gracile skulls and skeletons

• less prognathic

• flatter face

• forehead begins to rise straight up

• no brow ridge

• no postorbital constriction (indentation behind the orbits of a skull)

• arm still long

Scientist have debated over whether H. habilis and H. rudolfensis should be separated or not. H. rudolfensis was found in Koobi Fora, Kenya and lived 1.6 million years ago. Its characteristics are a cranial capacity of 750 ml, postorbital constriction, and no brow ridge. Although the characteristics of H. rudolfensis differ slightly from the characteristics stated above scientist still hesitate to separate them, because there is so much variation within H. habilis that they do not know where to draw the line.

Homo erectus / Homo ergaster

H. erectus existed 1.8-27,000 years ago and H. ergaster existed 1.8-1.5 million years ago. The separation between the two species is that H. erectus was found in Asia and H. ergaster was found in Africa. Other than that the two share the same characteristics.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 800-1100ml

• sloping forehead

• big brow ridge

• large orbits, nasal openings, and face

• saggital keeling (like the keel of a boat found on the top of the skull)

• postorbital constriction

• sulcus (a depression behind the orbits)

• thick cranium

• occipital bunning (a slight bulge of the back of the skull)

Important Finds:

1) This species was found with a different type of tool called Achuelian tools. These tools were more advanced than the Oldowan tools. Both sides of the rock were worked on to make the tool sharp and it gave the tool a tear drop shape. These tools were used for many tasks such as chopping, scraping, and cutting.

2) There is some evidence that this species may have used fire.

3) One of the major fossils found is a skull cap found in Java, Indonesia. In 1891 Eugene Dubois found this fossil at a time when people wanted to believe that our origins did not begin in Africa. Therefore they were hoping to find that our origins started in Java.

4) Another major fossil found was the Turkana Boy. This fossil is one of the most complete Homo skeletons found. The specimen was found in West Turkana Lake in Africa. Some important features about it is that it was stronger than Anatomically Modern Homo sapiens and that he had a narrow spinal cord, which may have inhibited speech.

Archaic Homo sapiens

These species first appeared around 800,000 years ago. "Archaic" describes a diverse group of hominids between H. erectus and "modern " humans. The brain size is larger than H. erectus, but smaller than most "modern" humans. The skull is also more round than H. erectus. The skeleton and teeth are less robust than H. erectus, but more so than "modern " humans. These species still have large brow ridges and receding foreheads and chins. There is no clear dividing line between these species.

Homo antecessor

This species existed 800,000 years ago and was found in Spain.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 1100ml

• "modern" face

• "archaic" back of head

This species is the oldest known hominid found in Western Europe, It was found with Achuelian tools and some evidence of cannibalism.

Homo heidelbergensis

This hominid existed 500,000-100,000 years ago. It has been found in Europe, Africa, India, and China.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 1000-1300ml

• big frontal lobes (giving it the capacity for speech)

• robust skeleton

This species was found in association with a new type of Achuelian tool. The tools were made with what is called the Levallois technique. The hominid worked on the rock from the middle out on both sides.

Homo neanderthalensis

This species existed 130,000 to 25,000 years ago. Some scientists propose to push back the date to as far as 225,000 years ago. This species has been found in Europe, East Asia, and the Middle East.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 1,300-1,750ml

• double arch brow ridge

• sloping forehead

• high, wide, nasal openings

• inflated maxilla & cheek bones

• no prognathism

• no chin

• retromolar gap (a gap behind the 3rd molar)

• big long incisors

• taurodontism (roots of the molars are fused)

• occipital bunning

• smaller frontal bones & more of a bulge on the sides of the skull

• mastoid process small

• oval shape foramen magnum (the opening at the bottom of the skull where the vertebrate column connects)

• robust skeletons

• big arm and leg bones

• wide toes and fingers

• short stature (avg. 5'5")

• barrel-shaped rib cage

H. neanderthalensis was found with a more advanced set of Achuelian tools called Mousterian tools. These tools are considered more advanced because more work was put into detailing them with animal bones and horns. Mousterian tools were the first tools to be hafted, that is to have handles. There were 63 different types of these tools.

Currently, anthropologists are debating over whether H. neanderthalensis is an animal or a sophisticate. Some anthropologists believe that H. neanderthalensis are sophisticates because of the following characteristics:

• sophisticated tools

• burial sites with tools, animal bones & horns & flowers

• cared for the disabled

• clothes

• shelters

• culture: clan of the cave bear

• art and music

Those anthropologists that claim that H. neanderthalensis are animals do so for the following reasons:

• They do not recognize the evidence for art, music, shelters, clothing, or caring for the dead

• They believe that the objects found in the burial sites were there by chance

• The anthropologists agree that the species had more advanced tools, but they did not know how to use them, resulting in many injuries.

Both groups of anthropologists have valid arguments, readers will have to draw their own conclusions.

Anatomically Modern Homo sapiens (AMHS)

This species existed 200,000 years ago- present. They were/are found in Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia, North America, and South America.

Characteristics:

• cranial capacity of 1400m

• vertical forehead

• round cranium

• thin skull

• no occipital bunning

• large mastoid process

• sunken in maxilla and cheekbones

• "small" brow ridge

• chin

• small front teeth

• no retromolar gap

• "delicate" postcranial skeleton

• taller than H. neanderthals

• smaller chest cavity, than H. neanderthalensis

Many of the features of AMHS overlap with other hominid species, therefore Miffed H. Wolf devised a list of characteristics that define AMHS. The characteristics are:

• growth in standardization and diversity of artifacts

• rapid increase in artifact change overtime

• first to shape bone, ivory, shell, and other non-stone materials

• art

• actual ruins/camps

• transport/trade stone tools across hundreds of miles

• solid evidence of ceremonies

• ability to survive in extreme cold

• increase population density

• first evidence of fishing

One of the interesting features of AMHS is that they AR associated with five tool industries.

1. Aurignacion Industry (40,000-28,000 years ago)

• tools: end scrapers, burins, and distinctive bone points

• first Venus figurines

• cave paintings

2. Chatelperronian Industry (40,000-28,000 years ago)

• tools: Mousterian type tools with blade and bone

• H. neanderthalensis were also known to use these tools

3. Gravettian Industry (28,000-22,000 years ago)

• tools: beveled bone points that served as spear points and backed blades

• ivory beads

• Venus figurines

4. Solutrean Industry (21,000-19,000 years ago)

• tools: bifacially flaked, leaf-shaped knives that were heated over a flame to prevent cracking

5. Magdalenian Industry (18,000-12,000 years ago)

• tools: microliths, arrows, barbed harpoons, spear throwers made out of bone, wood or antler.

• extensive wall art