Australopithecus afarensis ("Lucy") light finish Skull #BH-021-A

Size: 6&½"L x 5"W x 6"H

-Species: Australopithecus afarensis 

-Notes: The Australopithecus afarensis skull "Lucy" (approximately 3.2 million years old) was discovered by Donald Johanson in 1974 in Hadar, Ethiopia. We began with exact sculpted replicas of the original jaw and skull fragments. Then, based on every cast and all the scientific data on Australopithecus afarensis we could find as reference, we interpreted the results and sculpted our version of "Lucy." Two versions of the same skull are available with the reconstructed areas in either light or dark brown finish, with the jaw and skull fragments in contrasting fossil color.

Although the short stature of this female, only 3&1/2 feet, suggests that she was immature, eruption of the third molar provides evidence that this specimen was mature, and was simply a female representative of a sexually dimorphic species. The jaw shares features with both apes and other early hominids, with the shape showing some similarities to apes, with relatively large front teeth and parallel-sided tooth rows, and the size of the canine teeth being intermediate between apes and hominids who lived later. The cheek teeth are intermediate in size between hominids who lived earlier and those who lived later. The brain of "Lucy" was relatively small and overlapped in size with living apes; however, the shape of the pelvis, along with other characteristics of the postcranial skeleton, indicates that "Lucy" walked upright. At the same time, other characteristics of the limb skeleton indicate that members of this species spent time in the trees. This combination of an ape-sized brain in a hominid adapted to upright walking adds to the evidence that bipedalism occurred before the development of a relatively large brain. 2-part skull (separate cranium & jaw).

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