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Moroccan Fossils Dated to 773,000 Years Anchor African Ancestors Near Modern Human Roots

Precise dating to a geomagnetic reversal places an evolved African Homo erectus population near the split from Neanderthal–Denisovan ancestors.

The mandible of an archaic human who lived about 773 000 years ago is seen during excavations at a cave called Grotte a Hominides at a site known as Thomas Quarry I in the southwest part of the Moroccan city of Casablanca, in this undated photograph released on January 7, 2026. J.P. Raynal, Programme Prehistoire de Casablanca /Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY MANDATORY CREDIT NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES
The mandible of an archaic human who lived about 773 000 years ago is pictured after being excavated at a cave called Grotte a Hominides at a site known as Thomas Quarry I in the southwest part of the Moroccan city of Casablanca in this undated photograph released on January 7, 2026. J.P. Raynal, Programme Prehistoire de Casablanca /Handout via REUTERS
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Overview

  • The Nature study reports jawbones, teeth, vertebrae and a femur from Grotte à Hominidés at Thomas Quarry I on Casablanca’s outskirts, with the femur showing carnivore gnaw marks from a predator den context.
  • Magnetostratigraphy ties the fossils directly to the Matuyama–Brunhes reversal, providing an unusually tight age of about 773,000 years for a crucial interval in human evolution.
  • Anatomy shows a mosaic of traits, with H. erectus-like mandibles and more derived dental features seen in early H. sapiens and Neanderthals, leading the team to interpret the remains as an evolved North African H. erectus close to the base of the H. sapiens lineage.
  • Authors caution the fossils are not labeled the definitive last common ancestor but say they help fill a major African fossil gap between roughly 1 million and 600,000 years and reinforce deep African roots for our lineage.
  • The assemblage is roughly contemporaneous with Spain’s Homo antecessor and shows both similarities and clear differences, suggesting regional differentiation and possible intermittent links across the Strait of Gibraltar.