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The Upper Paleolithic Human Remains of Nazlet Khater 2 (Egypt) and Past Modern Human Diversity

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Modern Origins

Part of the book series: Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology ((VERT))

Abstract

The Nazlet Khater 2 skeleton was discovered in 1980 during the excavations of the Belgian Middle Egypt Prehistoric Project in the Nile Valley (Egypt). Its association with the early Upper Paleolithic chert mining site of Nazlet Khater 4 (NK 4) (whose exploitation period ranged from 35 to 40 ka) makes it the oldest almost complete Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 3 modern human skeleton in northern Africa. The Nazlet Khater 2 (NK 2) remains belong to a young adult male. It is well preserved with the exception of the distal part of the legs and the foot. Comparative analyses of the specimen underline the complex morphology of modern humans from this time period. NK 2 exhibits several retained archaic features, notably on the face and the mandible. The inner ear structures display morphological characteristics that stand on the edge of extant human variation. The postcranial remains have strong muscular insertions and are adapted to high biomechanical strength. Furthermore, NK 2 has vertebral and membral lesions. These postcranial characteristics might be related to intensive mining activities. The study of this specimen provides an opportunity to increase our understanding of past modern human diversity during this time period (MIS 3) for which very rare human remains are known.

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Acknowledgments

P. Vermeersch, P. Van Peer, and B. Maureille made the study of Nazlet Khater 2 possible by the entrusting this specimen to I.C. for analysis. We are grateful to the following curators and researchers who have allowed us to examine original fossils and collections in their care: H. de Lumley, D.L. Greene, D. Grimaud-Hervé, M. Judd, R. Kruszynski, S. Louryan, N. Spencer, C. Stringer, D. Van Gerven, and P. Semal. Drs. Hauret and Bar from the St-Augustin Hospital (Bordeaux) facilitated the CT acquisition of the NK 2 temporal remains. This study was supported in part by the “Projet Transition, volet Recherche Région Aquitaine” (convention 20051403003AB). We thank the editors and the anonymous referees for their useful comments and corrections.

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  1. Laboratoire d’Anthropologie des Populations Passées et Présentes, UMR 5199 PACEA/Université Bordeaux 1, Bâtiment B8, Avenue des Facultés, 33405, Talence Cedex, France

    I. Crevecoeur

  2. Laboratory of Anthropology and Prehistory, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Science (RBINS), 29 rue Vautier, 1000, Brussels, Belgium

    I. Crevecoeur

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  1. Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany

    Jean-Jacques Hublin

  2. Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany

    Shannon P. McPherron

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Crevecoeur, I. (2012). The Upper Paleolithic Human Remains of Nazlet Khater 2 (Egypt) and Past Modern Human Diversity . In: Hublin, JJ., McPherron, S. (eds) Modern Origins. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-2929-2_14

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