C HAPTER 13 Premodern Humans

T HE P LEISTOCENE The Pleistocene, often called the Ice Age, was marked by advances and retreats of massive continental glaciations. Middle Pleistocene (780,000– 25,000 y.a.) Upper Pleistocene (125,000–10,000 y.a.)

C HANGING P LEISTOCENE E NVIRONMENTS IN A FRICA

C HANGING P LEISTOCENE E NVIRONMENTS IN E URASIA

H OMO HEIDELBERGENSIS Europe and Africa 800, ,000 YA Regional variations Cranial capacity 1206 cm 3 Intermediate between H. erectus and H. sapiens Acheulean tools China Dali and Jinnishuan

H OMO HEIDELBERGENSIS SKULL FROM Z AMBIA The Kabwe (Broken Hill) Homo heidelbergensis skull from Zambia. Note the very heavy supraorbital torus.

E ARLIEST E VIDENCE OF H OMO H EIDELBERGENSIS IN A FRICA Bodo cranium, the earliest evidence of Homo heidelbergensis in Africa.

S TEINHEIM C RANIUM Steinheim cranium, a representative of H. heidelbergensis from Germany.

C RANIA FROM C HINA (a) Dali skull and (b) Jinniushan skull, both from China. These two crania are considered by some to be Asian representatives of Homo heidelbergensis.

F OSSIL D ISCOVERIES OF M IDDLE P LEISTOCENE P REMODERN H OMINIDS.

T IME LINE OF M IDDLE P LEISTOCENE HOMINIDS.

T HE L EVALLOIS T ECHNIQUE

N EANDERTHALS Europe and Southwest Asia Late Pleistocene 130,000 – 28,000 YA Over 400 individuals found Features Larger boned, short, stocky Bipedal Adapted to cold climate Occipital bun Cranial capacity – cm 3 (Avg cm 3)

M ORPHOLOGY AND V ARIATION IN N EANDERTAL C RANIA

F OSSIL D ISCOVERIES OF N EANDERTALS

K RAPINA (a) Lateral view showing characteristic Neandertal traits. (b) Three quarters view.

E XCAVATION OF THE T ABUN C AVE, M T. C ARMEL, I SRAEL

S HANIDAR 1 Among the individuals buried at Shanidar cave is the skeleton of a one- armed, partially blind, crippled man. He could not have hunted or gathered food on his own. Some believe his survival is proof of Neandertal compassion and humanity

F ATE OF THE N EANDERTHALS Outcompeted Hunting hypothesis Climate hypothesis Did they interbreed with AMH?

C ULTURE OF N EANDERTALS Mousterian industry Clothing Subsistence Fire Shelter Intentional burials Language Social Support Networks

P HYLOGENY OF GENUS H OMO

T HREE M AJOR E VOLUTIONARY T RANSITIONS 1. Transition from early Homo to H. erectus. Geographically limited to Africa and occurred rapidly. 2. Transition of H. erectus grading into early H. sapiens. Not geographically limited, but occurred slowly and unevenly. 3. Transition from Archaic H. sapiens to anatomically modern H. sapiens.