"At first glance it looks like nothing of this planet - a creature with a pointed object sticking out of its head, half man, half unicorn. But scientists are getting closer to unraveling the mystery of the Petralona skull. The ancient cranium - discovered in Petralona Cave, about 22 miles south-east of Thessaloniki in Greece - is less than 300,000 years old, they say."
"For this new study, the scientists dated the calcite that grew directly on the 'nearly complete cranium', which has the lower jaw missing. This calcite sample 'is the only sample able to provide crucial information on the age of the fossil', the team say in their new paper. They found that it is at least 277,000 years old, but possibly 295,000 years old, which places it during the later Middle Pleistocene era of Europe."
An ancient cranium known as the Petralona skull was discovered in Petralona Cave near Thessaloniki, Greece, and bears a stalagmite growth fused to its top. The skull is nearly complete but missing the lower jaw. Researchers dated calcite that accumulated directly on the cranium and used that mineral growth to determine its age. The calcite indicates an age of at least 277,000 years and possibly up to 295,000 years. That age places the specimen in the later Middle Pleistocene, when Europe had more humid forests and open woodland. The specimen does not align clearly with Homo sapiens or Neanderthals and holds a key position in European human evolution.
Read at Mail Online
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