The Homo rhodesiensis or man Rhodesia adopted its name from the remains found in what was formerly Broken Hill, Northern Rhodesia (now Kabwe, Zambia), about 150 miles to the north of the Kafue river. Later, when studying the fossils found, it was determined that it was a new species of the human genus.
This happened in the year 1921, when a miner found a skull that looked human. The paleontologist in charge of its study and subsequent classification was Arthur Smith Woodward, who ruled that this new finding could not be framed within the species known so far.
By https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Nachosan, via Wikimedia Commons
However, since those days the controversy persists, since many scientists dismiss Woodward and insist that this specimen can easily be part of already known species, such as N eanderthal and / or Homo heidelbergensis.
Rhodesian man is estimated to have existed 600,000 to 120,000 years ago in the Middle Pleistocene and only in Africa. That being the case, he was sharing at the same historical time with what is thought to be his direct descendant and current human species: Homo sapiens.
There is no certain idea of the causes of its extinction, but it is thought that it could be a plague or disease that wiped out the members of this species.
Discovery
It was a Swiss miner named Tom Zwiglaar who on June 17, 1921, while working in a cave belonging to an iron and zinc mine, came across some remains that seemed human.
They were fragments of various bone remains, but what was most puzzling was an almost complete skull, with rather primitive features, which appeared to be very old.
It was then that the authorities contacted Professor Arthur Smith Woodward of the Geology department of the British Museum, who at the end of that same year published the result of his study.
Some people linked to the scientific milieu question the veracity of his work, claiming that Woodward only longed for notoriety among his peers.
Past fraud
In fact, the doubt turned out to be reasonable given that Professor Woodward was involved in a well-known paleontological fraud that was publicly discovered in 1953.
This episode became known as the Piltdown Man Case, in which false evidence was claimed to have found a kind of missing link.
Over the years, other specialists have made well-argued observations, where they conclude that in reality the evolutionary traces of the remains found - apart from the bad reputation that Woodward may have - do not merit their classification as a separate species.
characteristics
The Broken Hill find was basically limited, in addition to the skull, to an upper jaw from another individual, a sacrum, a tibia, and two femur fragments.
Also in the place were some very fragmented bones that later it was determined that they could be the remains of some animals that this hominid probably predated.
Skull
For this reason, their study is basically limited to the skull in question and to describe and try to classify its morphological characteristics, looking for the most relevant evolutionary features. What stands out in the first instance is its size and its cranial capacity.
The arch of the maxilla and mandible, as well as the shape and size of the teeth, are also notable. The eye pits are particularly protruding, which tips the balance towards those who think it should be considered simply as Homo neanderthalensis.
The size of the skull projects a robust individual with a broad face and nose and its dating is also somewhat controversial, since the site of the find could not be preserved, making it impossible to apply the methodology of geological dating.
Instead, the aspartic acid racemization has been applied, which resulted in this fossil being between 300,000 and 125,000 years old.
Cranial capacity
The cranial capacity of the man of Rhodesia is similar to that of Homo sapiens, being calculated in 1280 cc and the cranial piece is complemented with a wide but inclined forehead, with prominent ocular orbits.
It also presents what appears to be certain deformations that some specialists diagnose as possible acromegaly.
The size of the skull of this specimen brings it closer to modern man in the evolutionary line, and although studies conclude that it did not have the ability to develop an elaborate language, it was capable of emitting sounds that, accompanied by signs, surely sought communication.
Feeding
The most remarkable thing about the Rhodesian man is that the upper teeth have 10 cavities that make up the oldest carious teeth that are known.
In fact, it is speculated that a strong infection could be the reason for the death of the individual, either in the teeth or in the hearing system.
From this it is clear that their diet was probably based on animal protein, whose remains in the teeth have a higher incidence in the generation of cavities, abscesses and in general dental damage, than consumption of only plant foods.
Some authors assert that, in collaboration with other individuals, it was also capable of obtaining larger game pieces that it shared with the clan. For this he used some rudimentary weapons made of stone that he used to attack his prey.
Habitat
The finding of Homo rodhesiensis makes it clear that this species lived in caves and used them as a refuge where it sheltered remains of small animals that it hunted and then consumed.
The lineage that gave rise to Homo sapiens must have come from this species, which probably later spread throughout Galilee, according to similar remains found later.
Another controversial issue surrounding the discovery of these remains is that the skull has suspiciously rounded holes and it is still not clear what originated them. The fact is that the right side of it is crossed by this opening of about 8 mm, with a perfectly rounded circumference.
The hypotheses are varied, but some point to very recent damage done later to the remains with much more modern weapons than those that existed before their extinction.
References
- Smith Woodward, Arthur (1921). "A New Cave Man from Rhodesia, South Africa". Retrieved on August 30 from Nature International Journal of Science: nature.com
- From Jorge, Judith (2018). "Did Homo erectus invent language 1.9 million years ago?" Retrieved on August 30 from ABC de España: abc.es
- "Rhodesian Man". Retrieved on August 30 from Science Daily: sciencedaily.com
- "What does it mean to be human" (2016). Retrieved August 30 from Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: humanorigins.si.edu
- "Homo rhodesiensis". Retrieved on August 30 from Wikipedia: wikipedia.org