Article
Anthropology
Harry Widianto, Sofwan Noerwidi, Agus Tri Hascaryo
Summary: The Sangiran Dome in Island Southeast Asia is a significant hominin site with over a hundred Homo erectus individuals recovered. The discovery of the Bjg 1602 skullcap suggests the presence of robust Homo erectus in Java during the early Middle Pleistocene, similar to the Sangiran 4 skullcap from the Early Pleistocene.
Article
Geography, Physical
Sander L. Hilgen, Frederik J. Hilgen, Shinatria Adhityatama, Klaudia F. Kuiper, Josephine C. A. Joordens
Summary: This study aims to develop an astronomical age model for the classical Sangiran Dome area of central Java, Indonesia, in order to provide more accurate insights into the arrival of Homo erectus on Java. The research suggests a later arrival time for Homo erectus on the island than previously believed, based on high-resolution age models.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ashley S. Hammond, Silindokuhle S. Mavuso, Maryse Biernat, David R. Braun, Zubair Jinnah, Sharon Kuo, Sahleselasie Melaku, Sylvia N. Wemanya, Emmanuel K. Ndiema, David B. Patterson, Kevin T. Uno, Dan V. Palcu
Summary: The study confirms the age of KNM-ER 2598 to be older than 1.855 million years, locating it as Homo erectus and uncovering fossils of C-4 grazers, as well as additional hominin fossils.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
W. Andrew Barr, Briana Pobiner, John Rowan, Andrew Du, J. Tyler Faith
Summary: The appearance of Homo erectus is often considered a turning point in human dietary evolution, but the evidence for increased carnivory in this species has not been thoroughly examined. This study analyzes the zooarchaeological record from eastern Africa and finds that the evidence for hominin carnivory is strongly related to sampling effort, with no sustained increase over time. These findings challenge the evolutionary narratives linking anatomical and behavioral traits to increased meat consumption in H. erectus.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Adeline Le Cabec, Thomas Colard, Damien Charabidze, Catherine Chaussain, Gabriele Di Carlo, Sabine Gaudzinski-Windheuser, Jean-Jacques Hublin, Rita T. Melis, Laura Pioli, Fernando Ramirez-Rozzi, Margherita Mussi
Summary: The paper discusses the importance of childhood in the modern human life history, reassessing a diagnosis of a rare genetic disease in an early human infant fossil and suggesting a more cautious approach to diagnosing pathologies on fossils. By comparing the dental development of the fossil with other hominins, the implications for the emergence of childhood in early Homo are also discussed.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marcia S. Ponce de Leon, Thibault Bienvenu, Assaf Marom, Silvano Engel, Paul Tafforeau, Jose Luis Alatorre Warren, David Lordkipanidze, Iwan Kurniawan, Delta Bayu Murti, Rusyad Adi Suriyanto, Toetik Koesbardiati, Christoph P. E. Zollikofer
Summary: The study reveals that early Homo from Africa and Western Asia retained a primitive, great ape-like organization of the frontal lobe, while African Homo older than 1.5 million years ago and all Southeast Asian Homo erectus exhibited a more evolved, humanlike brain organization. The frontal lobe reorganization, previously associated with earliest Homo in Africa, actually evolved relatively late, long after Homo dispersed from Africa.
Article
Anthropology
Alessandro Urciuoli, Julide Kubat, Lisa Schisanowski, Friedemann Schrenk, Bernhard Zipfel, Mirriam Tawane, Lunga Bam, David M. Alba, Ottmar Kullmer
Summary: Homo erectus exhibits a mosaic morphology that combines primitive and derived features. Cochlear morphology of Indonesian H. erectus individuals shows variations and similarities with other hominin species. These findings contribute to our understanding of H. erectus and its evolutionary relationship with other Homo species.
JOURNAL OF HUMAN EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Laurent Husson, Tristan Salles, Anne-Elisabeth Lebatard, Swann Zerathe, Regis Braucher, Sofwan Noerwidi, Sonny Aribowo, Claire Mallard, Julien Carcaillet, Danny H. Natawidjaja, Didier Bourles
Summary: This study reevaluates the first appearance of Javanese Homo erectus and reconstructs their dispersal routes through simulations, revealing the impact of environmental changes on the behavior of early humans.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Anthropology
Harry Widianto, Sofwan Noerwidi
Summary: The presence of Homo erectus in the Archipelago was established early on through the discovery of human remains on Java Island. These early humans migrated from Africa around 1.8 million years ago, spreading across Europe, East Asia, and Southeast Asia, until reaching Java Island. The lowering of sea levels during the Ice Age allowed migration from mainland Southeast Asia to the islands. The Homo erectus fossils found in various locations on Java Island represent different stages of evolution over millions of years.
Article
Anthropology
Sofwan Noerwidi, Harry Widianto, Anne-Marie Moigne, Amelie Vialet, M. Mirza Ansyori, M. Ruly Fauzi, Hua Tu, Christophe Falgueres, Anne-Marie Semah, Truman Simanjuntak, Jose Maria Bermudez de Castro, Maria Martinon-Torres, Francois Semah
Summary: This research aimed to contribute to the understanding of human occupation history in Java during the Late Pleistocene. By comparing two deciduous teeth discovered in the Song Terus site, one older than 80ka and the other younger than 60ka, with other human species, the preliminary results suggest that one tooth belonged to Homo erectus while the other one belonged to Homo sapiens. This confirms the presence of Homo erectus at the beginning of the Late Pleistocene and suggests the appearance of Homo sapiens in Java after 60ka.
Article
Paleontology
Marie Grace Pamela G. Faylona, Anne-Marie Semah, Francois Semah, Pierre Lozouet, Metta Adityas
Summary: This study explores the relationship between palaeoenvironmental reconstruction and the variability in palaeontological data by analyzing mollusc assemblages from Sangiran Dome in Central Java, Indonesia. The results show that fossil shells are useful for tracing environmental changes and understanding the distribution patterns of molluscs during the early Pleistocene.
PALAEONTOGRAPHICA ABTEILUNG A-PALAOZOOLOGIE-STRATIGRAPHIE
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
H. W. K. Berghuis, A. Veldkamp, Shinatria Adhityatama, Sander L. Hilgen, Indra Sutisna, Didit Hadi Barianto, Eduard A. L. Pop, Tony Reimann, Dida Yurnaldi, Dian Rahayu Ekowati, Hubert B. Vonhof, Thijs van Kolfschoten, Truman Simanjuntak, J. M. Schoorl, Josephine C. A. Joordens
Summary: Trinil in Java, Indonesia is a significant site for paleoanthropology, yielding fossils of Homo erectus and the world's oldest hominin-made engraving. A comprehensive geological study was conducted in the area, identifying seven fluvial terraces and establishing a new stratigraphic framework. The study provides valuable insights into the landscape context of Homo erectus in the region and offers a basis for future research on the hominin site of Trinil.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Juelide Kubat, Alessia Nava, Luca Bondioli, M. Christopher Dean, Clement Zanolli, Nicolas Bourgon, Anne-Marie Bacon, Fabrice Demeter, Beatrice Peripoli, Richard Albert, Tina Luedecke, Christine Hertler, Patrick Mahoney, Ottmar Kullmer, Friedemann Schrenk, Wolfgang Mueller
Summary: Geochemical analyses of Pleistocene teeth from Sangiran revealed the dietary strategies of orangutans, Homo erectus, and other mammals. Orangutans displayed marked seasonal cycles in their diet, while Homo erectus showed less intra-annual variability. The results suggest that Homo erectus on Java had a greater degree of nutritional independence and was less affected by seasonal resource availability compared to orangutans.
NATURE ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
H. W. K. Berghuis, Thijs van Kolfschoten, Shinatria Adhityatama, S. R. Troelstra, Sofwan Noerwidi, Rusyad Adi Suriyanto, Unggul Prasetyo Wibowo, Eduard Pop, Iwan Kurniawan, Sander L. Hilgen, A. Veldkamp, Josephine C. A. Joordens
Summary: The eastern Kendeng Hills in Java, Indonesia, provide a stratigraphic record that represents the emergence of eastern Java from the sea. Recent studies have shown that the process of emergence was complex, influenced by various factors, resulting in a varied depositional record. Through a re-interpretation of the stratigraphic record, the researchers identified it as a previously unrecognized embayment fill, changing our understanding of the timing of hominin migration to Java.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Clement Zanolli, Thomas W. Davies, Renaud Joannes-Boyau, Amelie Beaudet, Laurent Bruxelles, Frikkie de Beer, Jakobus Hoffman, Jean-Jacques Hublin, Kudakwashe Jakata, Lazarus Kgasi, Ottmar Kullmer, Roberto Macchiarelli, Lei Pan, Friedemann Schrenk, Frederic Santos, Dominic Stratford, Mirriam Tawane, Francis Thackeray, Song Xing, Bernhard Zipfel, Matthew M. Skinner
Summary: The origins of early Homo species and their diversity and distribution are still important questions in paleoanthropology. A study on Early Pleistocene Homo teeth from southern African sites suggests that only a few specimens can be unambiguously attributed to the genus Homo, while others retain dental traits of Australopithecus.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)