- Archaeological News
-
Image Credit: Xiaobo Feng and Hua Tu
Old Skulls Redate Early Human Presence in East Asia
A new scientific analysis has dramatically revised the age of three Homo erectus skulls discovered in Hubei Province, central China. The fossils are now dated to about 1.77 million years ago — roughly 600,000 years older than previously believed — making them the earliest known hominin remains in East Asia.
The skulls, known as the Yunxian fossils, were excavated between 1989 and 2022. Earlier estimates placed them at around one million years old, based mainly on associated animal remains. Researchers instead applied cosmogenic nuclide burial dating, a technique that measures radioactive isotopes formed in quartz when exposed to cosmic radiation. The results revealed a far earlier age.
The revised dating places the Yunxian individuals close in time to early human fossils from the Caucasus, suggesting that Homo erectus spread across Asia more rapidly than previously assumed. At the same time, the skulls show relatively large brain sizes compared with other early Asian finds of similar age, indicating significant variation among early human populations outside Africa.
The discovery complicates an already complex picture. Stone tools found elsewhere in China appear even older, leaving a substantial gap between the earliest tool evidence and the earliest fossil remains. The findings may also push researchers to reconsider the timing of the species’ emergence, possibly earlier than the commonly cited origin around two million years ago.
Some specialists caution that further dating work is necessary before broader conclusions are drawn, as such an early age would place the Yunxian fossils outside expected patterns in the current fossil record. Nevertheless, the study highlights East Asia as a key region for understanding the earliest migrations and diversity of ancient human relatives.
Published on: 18-02-2026
Edited by: Abdulmnam Samakie
Source: Live Science