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What archaeological evidence has been found at Sterkfontein?
The Sterkfontein Valley landscape comprises a number of fossil-bearing cave deposits which are considered to be of outstanding universal value, because they encapsulate a superbly preserved record of the fauna, including an invaluable record of the stages in the emergence and evolution of humanity, over the past 3.5 …
What was found in the Cradle of Humankind?
The Sterkfontein Caves were the site of the discovery of a 2.3-million-year-old fossil Australopithecus africanus (nicknamed “Mrs. Ples”), found in 1947 by Robert Broom and John T. Robinson.
Why are the Sterkfontein Caves important?
The Cradle of Humankind is one of the world’s most important fossil sites because it has produced: The first adult Australopithecus, found by Dr Robert Broom at Sterkfontein in 1936. A great number of cave sites containing fossils of our ancestors, their relatives, and the animals that populated their environment.
Which site were the youngest fossils found?
Fossils: Youngest known haramiyid fossil found in North America. The fossil of a complete cranium of a North American haramiyid – a group of early mammals – from the Cretaceous period is reported in a paper this week in Nature.
Which province is Sterkfontein?
Gauteng province
Sterkfontein (Afrikaans for Strong Spring) is a set of limestone caves of special interest to paleo-anthropologists located in Gauteng province, about 40 kilometres (25 mi) northwest of Johannesburg, South Africa in the Muldersdrift area close to the town of Krugersdorp.
How old is Sterkfontein?
In the early part of the 20th century, palaeontologists believed that humankind’s origins lay in Asia or Europe. Professor Raymond Dart’s theory that the Taung Child was a human ancestor was not well received.
Who discovered Mrs Ples?
Robert Broom
More than 70 years ago two palaeontologists named Robert Broom and John Robinson discovered a skull at the Sterkfontein Caves near Johannesburg. They nicknamed the skull, which is believed to be about 2.5 million years old, “Mrs Ples”.
When was Sterkfontein declared a South African National Heritage site?
2005
It was declared part of the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site in 2005, along with the Makapans Valley.
How old are the Sterkfontein Caves?
4-million years
The caves, which lie 50km northwest of the city of Johannesburg, are comprised of limestone and form part of 47 000 hectares of privately owned land. Fossils discovered at the caves date back more than 4-million years and are commonly accepted as representative of the birth of humanity.
Why do I have little feet?
Originally nicknamed “little foot” in 1995 when four ankle bones in a museum collection were sufficient to ascertain that the individual had been able to walk upright, the remainder of the skeleton was, subsequently, located in the cave from which the ankle bones had been collected.
Where can I visit the Sterkfontein mines?
The old Kromdraai gold mine near Sterkfontein can be visited in the Cradle of Humankind, where widescale prospecting also took place. The Sterkfontein Caves attracted miners because of the extensive deposits of calcium carbonate in the form of stalactites, stalagmites and flowstone.
What animals live in the Sterkfontein Caves?
The Sterkfontein Caves are also home to numerous wild African species including Belonogaster petiolata, a wasp species of which there is a large nesting presence. Numerous early hominin remains have been found at the site over the last few decades. These have been attributed to Australopithecus, early Homo and Paranthropus .
What was the name of the skeleton found at Sterkfontein?
The skeleton was named Little Foot, since the first parts found (in 1995, in storage) were the bones of a foot. Excavations continue to this day, and finds now total some 500 hominids, making Sterkfontein one of the richest sites in the world for early hominids.
When was the first cave excavation in South Africa?
Modern excavation of the caves began in the late 1890s by limestone miners who noticed the fossils and brought them to the attention of scientists. In 1936, students of Professor Raymond Dart and Dr. Robert Broom from the University of the Witwatersrand began concerted excavations.