Jebel Irhoud is located at the foothills of the rocky Atlas Mountains (Image: Getty)
, the species to which all modern humans belong, evolved in roughly 300,000 years ago.
Early Homo sapiens shared the planet with other human species like Neanderthals and Homo erectus, but gradually emerged as the dominant species due to advancements in tools, social structures, and cognitive abilities.
Over time, Homo sapiens spread from Africa to other continents, adapting to various environments and developing complex cultures.
Archaeologists have in recent times explored the ancient history of their ancestors, uncovering evidence in of the earliest known fossils of Homo sapiens, providing crucial insights into the origins of our species.
The human remains and associated stone tools, discovered at Jebel Irhoud, date back to between 350,000 and 280,000 years ago. This finding significantly extends the known timeline of the Homo sapiens lineage by more than 100,000 years.
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The jebel Irhoud: Where remains of primitive Homo sapiens associated with stone tools were found (Image: Getty)
These discoveries help bridge gaps in the fossil record and challenge existing theories on human evolution in Africa. As Professor Chris Stringer, a human origins expert at the , explains: “These finds currently represent the oldest association of probable early members of the Homo sapiens lineage and Middle Stone Age tools. They shift Morocco from a supposed backwater in the evolution of our species to a prominent position.”
Fossils were first unearthed at Jebel Irhoud in the 1960s but were initially estimated to be around 40,000 years old. Their anatomical features did not align with prevailing models of human evolution, leading researchers to view them as an anomaly. However, further analysis in the 1990s revised the estimated age to between 200,000 and 100,000 years.
More recent excavations, led by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, utilised advanced dating techniques to determine that these fossils were even older. New finds from the site include additional human remains, such as a partial skull and a lower jaw, along with stone tools. Using thermoluminescence dating, scientists estimated the tools to be between 350,000 and 280,000 years old.
Further analysis of a previously discovered fossil tooth also led to a significant reassessment. Initially dated to around 160,000 years ago, its revised age now falls within a range of approximately 318,000 to 254,000 years, consistent with the age of the tools.
Researchers compared the facial structure of the Irhoud fossils with , including Neanderthals. Their findings indicate that the Jebel Irhoud specimens share strong similarities with modern Homo sapiens in facial characteristics, while also displaying some archaic traits.
Professor Stringer elaborates: “The Irhoud fossils display some primitive features such as a longer, lower braincase, strong browridges, and a large face and teeth, as one might expect at around 300,000 years old. Yet the delicate cheekbones and retracted face look more modern, as do details of the skulls and teeth, and the shape of the jawbones.”
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The archaeological site is vast and holds deep secrets about the history of Homo sapiens (Image: Getty)
The precise timeline of remains uncertain. However, current fossil and genetic evidence suggests that modern humans and Neanderthals diverged at least 500,000 years ago. This implies that early examples of both lineages should exist in the fossil record.
Notably, early Neanderthal fossils discovered at Sima de los Huesos (“Pit of the Bones”) in Spain date to approximately 430,000 years ago. Until now, the earliest fossils resembling anatomically modern humans were from Omo Kibish in Ethiopia, dating to around 200,000 years ago. The Jebel Irhoud discoveries help fill a critical gap in the evolutionary timeline of our species.
Professor Stringer suggests that other previously overlooked fossils may warrant re-examination: “It is possible that earlier and neglected fossils from sites such as the Salé and Thomas Quarries in Morocco, and Ndutu in Tanzania, could be even more ancient members of our species, Homo sapiens.”
As more fossils are uncovered, the distinction between archaic and modern Homo sapiens may become less clear. Professor Stringer believes that around 300,000 years ago, multiple early Homo sapiens populations coexisted across Africa alongside other human lineages, such as Homo heidelbergensis (sometimes classified as Homo rhodesiensis) in Central Africa and Homo naledi in the south. These findings reinforce the idea that human evolution was a complex and dynamic process across the African continent.