Revealing important secrets about human evolution

Several 300,000-year-old human fossils discovered in Hualong Cave in Anhui Province, China, have been identified as the earliest hominin species in East Asia to evolve into Homo sapiens.

Chinese scientists have recently announced important findings related to dozens of human fossils dating back 300,000 years. This is the latest evidence of the evolution into Homo sapiens in East Asia.

Scientists said at a conference in Anhui province that the fossils, along with animal bones and stone tools, were discovered at Hualong Cave in Dongzhi County, Anhui Province.

Human fossils dating back 300,000 years were discovered in Hualong Cave in Anhui Province, eastern China. (Photo: CCTV News).

Since its discovery in 1988 and excavations since 2013, archaeologists have found nearly 20 ancient human fossils, a well-preserved skull, more than 400 stone tools and animal bones.

Wu Xiujie, a researcher at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and head of the excavation team, said the fossils show similarities between homo erectus and modern humans.

Accordingly, a skull discovered in 2015 believed to be that of a 13-14 year old girl showed a combination of primitive and modern features, such as a flat face, high eye sockets and a protruding chin - characteristics typical of modern humans.

Stone tools found at the site also show that the inhabitants had advanced technical skills and were on the path to evolving into Homo sapiens.

In addition, the findings also show that this site was home to a large family of more than 20 people. Notably, this family had a "dining room " for food preparation and possibly a separate shelter, which has now collapsed.

Experts said Hualong Cave is the second site in China after Zhoukoudian to yield so many human fossils and tools, playing an important role in understanding human activities during the middle to late Pleistocene.

The 300,000-year time frame is crucial to understanding the origins of modern humans, according to expert Xu Xing of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Currently, most theories suggest that modern humans originated in Africa and migrated globally, but new evidence such as from the Hualong Cave suggests that the process is more complex, and that modern humans may have originated from multiple regions.

According to world scientists, these findings can supplement scientific evidence, contributing to finding unified answers to basic questions: Who are we and where do we come from.