KNM-ER 1470 = Homo rudolfensis = ancient ape?

The skull above was discovered by Bernard Ngeneo in 1972, at Koobi Fora in Kenya. It has an estimated age of 1.9 million years. Originally, KNM-ER 1470 was claimed to be a Homo habilis skull. The braincase was found to be surprisingly modern in many respects, much less robust than any australopithecine skull. It also did not have the usual robustness and large brow ridges of Homo erectus. The face, in contrast, is extremely large and robust. In the last few years, an increasing number of anthropologists have classified this skull as Homo rudolfensis.

Is it an ape or a human? A new reconstruction (above) appears to point to an anthropoid.

The left image shows the original reconstruction of KNM-ER 1470. On the right is Timothy Bromage’s computer-simulated reconstruction, which shows the same skull with a distinctly protruding jaw. The green and red lines mark the location of the eyes, ears, and mouth, which must be in precise relationship to one another in all mammals.

Credit: Timothy Bromage