Early <i>Homo erectus</i> lived at high altitudes and produced both Oldowan and Acheulean tools

Abstract

In Africa, the scarcity of hominin remains found in direct association with stone tools has hindered attempts to link <i>Homo habilis</i> and <i>Homo erectus</i> with particular lithic industries. The infant mandible discovered in level E at Garba IV (Melka Kunture) on the highlands of Ethiopia is critical to this issue due to its direct association with an Oldowan lithic industry. Here, we use synchrotron imaging to examine the internal morphology of the unerupted permanent dentition and confirm its identification as <i>Homo erectus</i>. Additionally, we utilize new palaeomagnetic ages to show that (i) the mandible in level E is ca. 2 million-years-old, and represents one of the earliest <i>Homo erectus</i> fossils, and (ii) that overlying level D, ca. 1.95 million-years-old, contains the earliest known Acheulean assemblage.