Discoveries at Dmanisi: Evidence from Skull 5

David Lordkipanidze's research team at the site of Dmanisi in the Republic of Georgia, unearthed a spectacular collection of skulls and skeletal bones from at least five individuals dating from 1.8 million years ago. The Dmanisi discoveries document the first expansion of hominins out of Africa and show that this was neither due to increased brain size, nor to improved technology. These discoveries include "Skull 5", the most complete early Homo skull ever found. The variation in the five different skulls from the same place and time yields exciting new evidence on the evolutionary biology of early Homo and supports the idea of a single evolving lineage of early Homo. 

This lecture is part of The Leakey Foundation's Speaker Series on Human Origins, and is presented in partnership with the Stone Age Institute and The California Academy of Sciences.

David Lordkipanidze, is the General Director of the National Museum of Georgia and has authored over 100 scientific articles published in journals such as Nature, Science Magazine, Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences of USA, Journal of Human Evolution and more. He is regularly featured in the popular scientific magazines such as National Geographic magazine, GEO magazine, and Scientific American.