Hominins in Europe: New evidence rewrites ancient timeline

As reported by the Polish Press Agency, the latest scientific discoveries suggest that hominins may have inhabited Europe much earlier than previously assumed. The research results published in "Nature Communications" point to the presence of these beings on the continent as early as about 1.95 million years ago.

A research team led by Sabrina Curran from Ohio University, Alexandru Petculescu from the Romanian Academy of Sciences, and Claire E. Terhune from the University of Arkansas discovered bones in Romania with cut marks from stone tools. These findings, dated to approximately 1.95 million years ago, represent one of the earliest pieces of evidence of tool use in Europe.

Previously, the oldest traces of hominin presence in Europe came from the Dmanisi cave in Georgia, dated to roughly 1.8 million years ago. The new discoveries suggest that the migration of these beings to the continent may have occurred as early as 2 million years ago.

The research in Romania is based on earlier excavations from the 1960s and 1980s. Bones, which were stored at the Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology and the Oltenia Museum in Craiova, were only recently subjected to advanced analyses.

Initially, we didn't expect to find much. However, during a routine review of the collections, we found several bones with cut marks," explains Sabrina Curran, quoted by PAP.

This discovery prompted researchers to conduct more comprehensive analyses, including dating and reconstructing the living environments of these archaic humans.

The archaeological site in Graunceanu is crucial for understanding human prehistory. It shows that even at this stage, archaic humans began to explore different environments in Eurasia, indicating their adaptability, which was essential for their survival and spread.