Nanjing Man

Lore & Background

In 1992, researchers from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology identified Hulu Cave as a mammalian fossil site and organized excavations with the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology. In March 1993, local laborer Liu Luhong discovered two partial skull fragments (Nanjing 1 and 2) and an upper molar (Nanjing 3). The mammal assemblage suggested the site was roughly contemporaneous with the Zhoukoudian cave site, home of Peking Man.

Reader's Guide

The Nanjing Man fossils are significant because their dating—between 580,000 and 620,000 years old—pushed the estimated colonization of eastern Asia by Homo erectus almost 270,000 years earlier than previously thought. This extended occupation supports the hypothesis that Homo erectus lived in Asia before pre-modern Homo sapiens existed. The discovery coincided with debates on modern human origins, though the influence of East Asian Homo erectus on modern human ancestry remains unclear. Morphological features of the skulls, such as cranial capacity, differ from other Chinese hominins but fall within the range expected for Homo erectus, highlighting high diversity in Chinese Homo erectus cranial traits. The fossils are displayed at the Nanjing Homo erectus fossil museum.

Did You Know?

• The fossils were found at a depth of 60–97 cm in a limestone cave.
• The skulls were dated using mass spectrometric U-series dating, yielding an age of 580,000–620,000 years.
• The tooth found at the site was estimated to be only 400,000 years old, possibly due to different uranium uptake in enamel.
• The mammal assemblage at Hulu Cave was roughly contemporaneous with that of the Zhoukoudian cave site.