A skull discovered in a Laos cave might detail when humans first entered the Asian continent.
Found in the "Cave of the Monkeys," the skeletal remains suggest the first humans migrated into Southeast Asia 60,000 years ago. The skull was originally discovered in 2009 at the peak of Pa Hang Mountain where monkeys have claim territory, hence the name "Cave of the Monkeys."
Researchers believe the first anatomically modern humans came from Africa 200,000 years ago. The age was determined using radiocarbon and luminescence techniques on the soil layers around the skull, according to Science Codex.
The skeletal remains further suggest the migrated humans at first could not survive the warm climate of the region.
Speaking to Live Science, University of Illinois Paleoanthropologist Laura Lynn Shackelford said, "The typical thinking was that once modern humans hugged the coastline to go from India to Southeast Asia, they went southward into Indonesia and Australasia. We think they absolutely did that, but we're also suggesting other populations probably went north or northeast toward China, and some went through the mountains into mainland Southeast Asia, taking advantage of river systems. Beforehand, no one thought they would have gone into the mountains of Laos, Vietnam and Thailand."
Researchers are currently attempting to obtain DNA from the skeletal remains to see if it may match with humans living in the Southeast Asia area.
"Most surprising is the fact that we found anything at all," said Shackelford. "Most people didn't think we'd find anything in these caves, or even in the region where we're working in mainland Southeast Asia. But we're stubborn, gone where no one's really looked before, or at least in almost a century."
The study can further be found in the Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
