Fragments of a Face

In a cave in the Sierra de Atapuerca mountains of northern Spain called Sima del Elefante, researchers have found fossilized bone fragments of the earliest known face in Western Europe. The hominin who owned the face is estimated to be 1.1 million to 1.4 million years old.

Discovered in 2022, portions of the left side of an adult face significantly predate those of Homo antecessor, the oldest hominin species previously found at the site. The remains were named “Pink” after the rock band Pink Floyd.

Hominins include all the groups of modern humans, extinct human species, and all our immediate ancestors.

Pink doesn’t fit into the known hominin species, and has, for now, been classified as Homo affinis erectus, which means they are closely related to Homo erectus, an extinct species of man. In Latin, Homo erectus means “upright man”.

Pink’s facial features are more primitive than modern man. It resembles Homo erectus, especially with its flat nasal structure. But it is possible that pink may belong to another species.

This archaeological site was discovered at the end of the 19^th century and early 20^th century. It has been systematically excavated since 1978. Besides ancient human skulls, it has revealed evidence of cannibalism. At the same level of the cave were found animal remains with cut marks and stone tools.

Pink lived in a humid forest landscape with water streaming through the area. It was a wetter, more temperate climate than it is now. These fossilized facial pieces add to our knowledge of some of the first human relatives in Europe. The discovery supports the idea that Pink was a relative of Homo erectus fossils found much further east, as far as Indonesia, as well as in Africa.

The discovery that different hominin populations occupied Western Europe during the early Pleistocene epoch suggests that this region was a key point in man’s evolutionary history. The early Pleistocene epoch extends from 2.6 million years ago to 781,000 years ago.

It seems that Pink occupied an evolutionary space between the oldest known hominins (in South Africa, roughly 3.4 to 3.7 million years ago) and Homo antecessor (about 860,000 years ago). Researchers said that the evidence points to the hominins arrived in Spain via Eastern Europe.

There is more work to do, like excavating lower levels of Sima del Elefante, so they may find even more surprises.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fragments-of-a-face-more-than-a-million-years-old-found-in-spanish-cave/ar-AA1AMV64?ocid=mailsignout&pc=U591&cvid=92b66b3d61ca48d8deba7416e37ab7fb&ei=87

Mile High Roman Military Camp

The army of ancient Rome was afraid of nothing. They definitely had no fear of heights, because a 2,000-year-old Roman military camp has been discovered in the Swiss Alps, 7,000 feet above sea level.

Archaeologists continue to explore the history of the Roman army. They have unearthed a military camp—previously unknown—strategically positioned to have tactical views of the surrounding valleys and mountain passes.

They didn’t just find the ditches and a wall of the camp; they also found lead sling bullets that bore the stamp of the Roman 3^rd Legion.

Since 2021, a team has been researching the landscape between Cunter and Tiefencastel. Their focus was on a Roman battlefield in the Oberhalbstein Alps, in eastern Switzerland. But in the fall of 2023, they discovered a striking terrain structure in the Colm la Runga corridor, which is about 3,000 feet above the battlefield.

They investigated the site using a high-resolution digital terrain model and LIDAR data. A LADAR laser scans the ground and reveals even slight height differences in the terrain as a grayscale image. In this location, it revealed the profile of an artificial fortification.

Undisturbed for two millennia, 7,000 feet high in the Alps, this Roman military camp was fortified by three ditches and a wall with ramparts (protective barrier). It offers a view of four key valleys and a heavily traveled mountain passageway. It gave Roman soldiers a perfect view to spot any incoming enemies.

Researchers have found weapons and equipment belonging to Roman soldiers, including lead sling bullets and boot nails. Since the bullets bear the stamp of the 3^rd Legion, they give an obvious tie between the ancient battlefield and the camp above. Both the battlefield and the camp date to about 2,000 years ago.

The discovery helps track the advancement of Roman forces from Bergell over the Septimer Pass to the Tiefencastel area and then toward Chur and the Alpine Rhine Valley.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/archaeologists-found-an-ancient-roman-military-camp-hiding-7-000-feet-high-in-the-sky/ar-AA1Ph7wu?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=68ffc967a5534259acc6f97531fc42f4&ei=55