Earliest Human Fossils Discovered In Nothern Spain

Perhaps the oldest fragments of a newly discovered human ancestor has been has been found in northern Spain.

Spanish scientists revealed the disovery today showing that facial bones belonging to an individual nicknamed ‘Pink’ may represent a previously unidentified member of the human family who lived over 1.1 million years ago.

Previously, the oldest-known human species in Western Europe was Homo antecessor, a slender-faced hominin dating back approximately 850,000 years.

However, new research published in the scientific journal Nature ‘introduces a new actor in the history of human evolution in Europe’, said Rosa Huguet, the lead study author from Spain’s University of Rovira i Virgili, during a press conference today.

The fossilised upper jawbone and part of the cheekbone were unearthed in 2022 at the Atapuerca archaeological site – a UNESCO World Heritage site in northern Spain.

Since the discovery, a team of Spanish researchers has been working to uncover more details about Pink, whose nickname pays tribute to the progressive rock band Pink Floyd.

The remains were found 16 metres deep in a layer of silt and red mud at a site called Sima del Elefante, or ‘elephant pit’.

The Atapuerca cave complex has already provided significant insights into ancient human history. The bones of ‘Pink’ were located less than 250 metres from where Homo antecessor fossils – previously the oldest in Western Europe -were discovered nearly 20 years ago.

However, the record for the oldest known human is of Homo georgicus, who lived around 1.8 million years ago in present-day Georgia.

Modern Homo sapiens did not appear in Africa until roughly 300,000 years ago -and took their time before arriving in Europe.