Chinese scientists reconstruct the face of the Denisovans
In short
- The Denisovans were known until now only from DNA and fossil fragments.
- The face was reconstructed from fossils excavated at Xujiayao in northern China between 1976 and 1979.
- The hominids were thought to have lived in Siberia and East and Southeast Asia thousands of years ago.
Why the Good News Desk likes this one
The Denisovans have been known from DNA and a few fossil fragments, with no picture of what they looked like. The reconstruction draws on fossils from Xujiayao, excavated in the late 1970s, and gives researchers and readers a concrete image of an ancient human relative. The source text is cut off, so the full findings are not covered here.
From South China Morning Post
Chinese scientists have finally put a face to the Denisovans, a mysterious species of ancient humans who were previously known only through the evidence of their DNA and fossil fragments. The hominids were thought to have lived in parts of Siberia and East and Southeast Asia thousands of years ago. The work of reconstructing their face was based on fossils excavated from Xujiayao, a major archaeological site in northern China’s Nihewan Basin, between 1976 and 1979. Scientists also confirmed that...
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For kids
Long, long ago there were ancient humans called the Denisovans. We only knew them from tiny bits of bone and their DNA. Now scientists in China have worked out what one of their faces may have looked like. Talk about it: what do you think they looked like?
