TBILISI, GEORGIA—Five 1.8-million-year-old skulls have been unearthed in Dmanisi, home of the largest collection of well-preserved human remains in the world. In fact, the fifth skull is being called the most complete hominid skull ever found. Its small braincase, large teeth, and long face are similar to Homo habilis, even though features of its braincase resemble those of Homo erectus. Georgian scientist David Lordkipanidze of the Georgian National Museum says that the five skulls show a lot of variation within a single population, and indicate that Homo habilis, Homo rudolfensis, and Homo erectus are all just variations within one species. “When we looked at this variability and compared it with modern humans, you can see this is a normal range of variation,” he explained. But other researchers are reluctant to lump these Homo species together. “They do a very general shape analysis of the cranium which describes the shape of the face and braincase in broad sweeping terms,” commented Fred Spoor of University College London.
