Ancient history

Sale | anthropological and archaeological site, Morocco

Salé , site of paleoanthropological excavations near Rabat , Morocco , known for the discovery of a skull of the human species ( Homo ) in 1971 . The site has been tentatively dated to 400,000 years and contained some animal fossils, but there were no associated stone tools.

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The skull is small and delicate with no strong muscle markings. Brain size is in the range of Homo erectus, but significantly below that of H. sapiens . It also aligns its long, low, and thick-walled brain case H. erectus out . However, other features are similar H. sapiens ; This includes the expanded sides (parietal bones) of the skull and a rounded posterior part that shows only a poorly developed crest. There is a pronounced asymmetry in the back and base of the skull that may indicate some type of pathology.

Due to its presumably pathological properties and its combination of H. erectus and H. sapiens characteristics, the Salé skull is difficult to classify. It may become instances of H. erectus from Africa (sometimes spelled H. denoted ) from places like the Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) and Bouri (Ethiopia). However, it can be better classified as H. heidelbergensis between H. erectus and H. sapiens lies .