史密森尼雜誌發表的一份聲明中說。

研究人員認為，今天生活在非洲以外的大多數人都有祖先，他們在大約6萬年前的大規模遷徙中離開了非洲。但有證據表明，一小群智人早在幾千年前就離開了非洲，通過西奈半島和其他路線進入了中東。

“從這些觀察來看，阿拉特湖(腳印被發現的地方)似乎只有人類短暫造訪過。它可能是長途旅行中的一個停靠點，人們在那裡飲水和覓食，這可能是由於乾旱和水資源缺少導致的。”

教授Erella盤旋,耶路撒冷希伯來大學的考古研究所史前考古學教授Moshe Stekelis,對《耶路撒冷郵報》說,“它們(足跡)代表化石解剖學,他們確實是最早的阿拉伯半島,並因此將增加有趣的資訊散佈到歐亞大陸和亞洲的航線。該出版物的補充材料指出了一些不確定之處- -各種測年方法所獲得的年代和地層關係為其他解釋留下了一些餘地。”

雖然「科學進步」的作者的文章寫道,他們發現足跡似乎是由人類更高和更輕的人比較尼安德特人,徘徊在說,“足跡的比較資料的基礎上被分配到智人嚴重偏向自己的物種。一些評論人士已經提出，這些腳印可能屬於尼安德特人，儘管當然沒有骨骼證據證明阿拉伯半島上的這個群體的成員。另一種需要記住的可能性是，儘管研究人員(含蓄地)把他們的發現放在離開非洲進入歐亞大陸的背景下，但更大的情況表明，有可能返回非洲，因為沒有理由認為交通是單向的。”

當被問及這七個腳印對未來研究的重要性時，Hovers說:“我想說的是，這主要意味著人們應該對這種可能發生的可能性保持開放的頭腦，並在可能保留足跡的背景下進行實地工作時保持敏銳的眼睛。”幸運的是，通過詳細的研究，這些軌跡可以提供豐富的資訊。總的來說，這些資料很重要，我認為，這些腳印以及它們下面和上面的沉積物可以被挖掘出來，獲得更多可能意義重大的資訊。”

Footprints in Saudi Arabia could prove humans were there 120,000 years agoArcheologists working in Nefud Desert noticed the footprints left in the sediment amid hundreds of footprints by animals.

By HANNAH BROWN   

SEPTEMBER 22, 2020 18:22

The Nefud desert in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula

(photo credit: CHARLES T.G. CLARKE / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)

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Seven footprints found in a dry lake bed in el norte of Saudi Arabia could prove that humans were present in the area 120,000 years ago, according a un artículo just published in Science Advances.

The article states that, “Los resultados... likely represent the oldest securely dated evidence for Homo sapiens in Arabia. The paleoecological evidence indicates a well-watered semi-arid grassland setting during human movements into the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia.” Estos hallazgos might reveal how humans traveled when they left Africa in search of new lands.

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Archaeologists working in Nefud Desert noticed the footprints left in the sediment amid hundreds of footprints by animals that may have included elephants, camels, buffalo and creatures similar to modern-day horses.

“The presence of large animals such as elephants and hippos, together with open grasslands and large water resources, may have made northern Arabia a particularly attractive place to humans moving between Africa and Eurasia,” Michael Petraglia, one of the study’s co-authors, who is an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for Science and Human History, said in a statement released to the Smithsonian Magazine.

Researchers believe that the majority of people living outside Africa today have ancestors who left Africa in a mass migration about 60,000 years ago. But there is evidence that pequeñas bandas of Homo sapiens left Africa thousands of years earlier and traveled into the Middle East via the Sinai Peninsula and other routes.

“From these observations, aparece that the Alathar lake [where the footprints were found] was only briefly visited by humans. It may have served as a stopping point and place to drink and forage during long-distance travel, perhaps initiated by the arrival of dry conditions and dwindling water resources,” the authors of the paper conclude.

Prof. Erella Hovers, Moshe Stekelis professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told The Jerusalem Post, “To the degree that they [the footprints] represent the fossil anatomy, they are indeed the earliest on the Arabian peninsula, and as such would add interesting information about the routes of dispersal into Eurasia and Asia. Some uncertainties are noted in the supplementary material of this publication — the ages obtained by the various dating methods and the stratigraphic relationship leave cierto margen for alternative interpretations.”

While the authors of the Science Advances article wrote that they found that the footprints seem to have been made by hominins who were taller and thinner than Neanderthals, Hovers said, “The comparative data on the basis of which the footprints were assigned to Homo sapiens are heavily biased towards our own species. Several commentators have already raised the idea that the footprints might belong to Neanderthals, though of course there is no skeletal evidence that testifies to members de este grupo on the Arabian peninsula. Another possibility that uno tiene to bear in mind is that, although the researchers place their finding (implicitly) in the context of out of Africa dispersals into Eurasia, the bigger picture suggests a possibility of back to Africa, as there is no reason to assume that traffic was one-way only.”

Asked about the importance of these seven footprints for future research, Hovers said, “I would say that the main implication is that one should keep an open head to the possibility that this might happen, and keep a sharp eye while doing fieldwork in contexts that may preserve tracks. With luck and detailed study, such tracks can provide a wealth of information... On the whole, the data are important, and Creo that the prints as well as the sediments below and above them can be mined for much more information that may prove significant.”

The Nefud desert in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula (photo credit: CHARLES T.G. CLARKE / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS) Advertisement Seven footprints found in a dry lake bed in el norte of Saudi Arabia could prove that humans were present in the area 120,000 years ago, according a un artículo just published in Science Advances. The article states that, “Los resultados... likely represent the oldest securely dated evidence for Homo sapiens in Arabia. The paleoecological evidence indicates a well-watered semi-arid grassland setting during human movements into the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia.” Estos hallazgos might reveal how humans traveled when they left Africa in search of new lands. Read More Related Articles Recommended by Archaeologists working in Nefud Desert noticed the footprints left in the sediment amid hundreds of footprints by animals that may have included elephants, camels, buffalo and creatures similar to modern-day horses. “The presence of large animals such as elephants and hippos, together with open grasslands and large water resources, may have made northern Arabia a particularly attractive place to humans moving between Africa and Eurasia,” Michael Petraglia, one of the study’s co-authors, who is an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for Science and Human History, said in a statement released to the Smithsonian Magazine. Researchers believe that the majority of people living outside Africa today have ancestors who left Africa in a mass migration about 60,000 years ago. But there is evidence that pequeñas bandas of Homo sapiens left Africa thousands of years earlier and traveled into the Middle East via the Sinai Peninsula and other routes. “From these observations, aparece that the Alathar lake [where the footprints were found] was only briefly visited by humans. It may have served as a stopping point and place to drink and forage during long-distance travel, perhaps initiated by the arrival of dry conditions and dwindling water resources,” the authors of the paper conclude. Prof. Erella Hovers, Moshe Stekelis professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told The Jerusalem Post, “To the degree that they [the footprints] represent the fossil anatomy, they are indeed the earliest on the Arabian peninsula, and as such would add interesting information about the routes of dispersal into Eurasia and Asia. Some uncertainties are noted in the supplementary material of this publication — the ages obtained by the various dating methods and the stratigraphic relationship leave cierto margen for alternative interpretations.” While the authors of the Science Advances article wrote that they found that the footprints seem to have been made by hominins who were taller and thinner than Neanderthals, Hovers said, “The comparative data on the basis of which the footprints were assigned to Homo sapiens are heavily biased towards our own species. Several commentators have already raised the idea that the footprints might belong to Neanderthals, though of course there is no skeletal evidence that testifies to members de este grupo on the Arabian peninsula. Another possibility that uno tiene to bear in mind is that, although the researchers place their finding (implicitly) in the context of out of Africa dispersals into Eurasia, the bigger picture suggests a possibility of back to Africa, as there is no reason to assume that traffic was one-way only.” Asked about the importance of these seven footprints for future research, Hovers said, “I would say that the main implication is that one should keep an open head to the possibility that this might happen, and keep a sharp eye while doing fieldwork in contexts that may preserve tracks. With luck and detailed study, such tracks can provide a wealth of information... On the whole, the data are important, and Creo that the prints as well as the sediments below and above them can be mined for much more information that may prove significant.”

The Nefud desert in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula

(photo credit: CHARLES T.G. CLARKE / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)

Advertisement

Seven footprints found in a dry lake bed in el norte of Saudi Arabia could prove that humans were present in the area 120,000 years ago, according a un artículo just published in Science Advances.

The article states that, “Los resultados... likely represent the oldest securely dated evidence for Homo sapiens in Arabia. The paleoecological evidence indicates a well-watered semi-arid grassland setting during human movements into the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia.” Estos hallazgos might reveal how humans traveled when they left Africa in search of new lands.

Read More Related Articles


Recommended by

Archaeologists working in Nefud Desert noticed the footprints left in the sediment amid hundreds of footprints by animals that may have included elephants, camels, buffalo and creatures similar to modern-day horses.

“The presence of large animals such as elephants and hippos, together with open grasslands and large water resources, may have made northern Arabia a particularly attractive place to humans moving between Africa and Eurasia,” Michael Petraglia, one of the study’s co-authors, who is an archaeologist at the Max Planck Institute for Science and Human History, said in a statement released to the Smithsonian Magazine.

Researchers believe that the majority of people living outside Africa today have ancestors who left Africa in a mass migration about 60,000 years ago. But there is evidence that pequeñas bandas of Homo sapiens left Africa thousands of years earlier and traveled into the Middle East via the Sinai Peninsula and other routes.

“From these observations, aparece that the Alathar lake [where the footprints were found] was only briefly visited by humans. It may have served as a stopping point and place to drink and forage during long-distance travel, perhaps initiated by the arrival of dry conditions and dwindling water resources,” the authors of the paper conclude.

Prof. Erella Hovers, Moshe Stekelis professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told The Jerusalem Post, “To the degree that they [the footprints] represent the fossil anatomy, they are indeed the earliest on the Arabian peninsula, and as such would add interesting information about the routes of dispersal into Eurasia and Asia. Some uncertainties are noted in the supplementary material of this publication — the ages obtained by the various dating methods and the stratigraphic relationship leave cierto margen for alternative interpretations.”

While the authors of the Science Advances article wrote that they found that the footprints seem to have been made by hominins who were taller and thinner than Neanderthals, Hovers said, “The comparative data on the basis of which the footprints were assigned to Homo sapiens are heavily biased towards our own species. Several commentators have already raised the idea that the footprints might belong to Neanderthals, though of course there is no skeletal evidence that testifies to members de este grupo on the Arabian peninsula. Another possibility that uno tiene to bear in mind is that, although the researchers place their finding (implicitly) in the context of out of Africa dispersals into Eurasia, the bigger picture suggests a possibility of back to Africa, as there is no reason to assume that traffic was one-way only.”

Asked about the importance of these seven footprints for future research, Hovers said, “I would say that the main implication is that one should keep an open head to the possibility that this might happen, and keep a sharp eye while doing fieldwork in contexts that may preserve tracks. With luck and detailed study, such tracks can provide a wealth of information... On the whole, the data are important, and Creo that the prints as well as the sediments below and above them can be mined for much more information that may prove significant.”