eLife (Sep 2015)
Geological and taphonomic context for the new hominin species Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa
- Paul HGM Dirks,
- Lee R Berger,
- Eric M Roberts,
- Jan D Kramers,
- John Hawks,
- Patrick S Randolph-Quinney,
- Marina Elliott,
- Charles M Musiba,
- Steven E Churchill,
- Darryl J de Ruiter,
- Peter Schmid,
- Lucinda R Backwell,
- Georgy A Belyanin,
- Pedro Boshoff,
- K Lindsay Hunter,
- Elen M Feuerriegel,
- Alia Gurtov,
- James du G Harrison,
- Rick Hunter,
- Ashley Kruger,
- Hannah Morris,
- Tebogo V Makhubela,
- Becca Peixotto,
- Steven Tucker
Affiliations
- Paul HGM Dirks
- Department of Earth and Oceans, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia; Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Lee R Berger
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Eric M Roberts
- Department of Earth and Oceans, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia; Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Jan D Kramers
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
- John Hawks
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, United States
- Patrick S Randolph-Quinney
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Marina Elliott
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada
- Charles M Musiba
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, United States
- Steven E Churchill
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, United States
- Darryl J de Ruiter
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, College Station, United States
- Peter Schmid
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Lucinda R Backwell
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Georgy A Belyanin
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Pedro Boshoff
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, United States
- K Lindsay Hunter
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Elen M Feuerriegel
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Alia Gurtov
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, United States
- James du G Harrison
- School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Rick Hunter
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Ashley Kruger
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Hannah Morris
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Tebogo V Makhubela
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Becca Peixotto
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Anthropology, American University, Washington DC, United States
- Steven Tucker
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.09561
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 4
Abstract
We describe the physical context of the Dinaledi Chamber within the Rising Star cave, South Africa, which contains the fossils of Homo naledi. Approximately 1550 specimens of hominin remains have been recovered from at least 15 individuals, representing a small portion of the total fossil content. Macro-vertebrate fossils are exclusively H. naledi, and occur within clay-rich sediments derived from in situ weathering, and exogenous clay and silt, which entered the chamber through fractures that prevented passage of coarser-grained material. The chamber was always in the dark zone, and not accessible to non-hominins. Bone taphonomy indicates that hominin individuals reached the chamber complete, with disarticulation occurring during/after deposition. Hominins accumulated over time as older laminated mudstone units and sediment along the cave floor were eroded. Preliminary evidence is consistent with deliberate body disposal in a single location, by a hominin species other than Homo sapiens, at an as-yet unknown date.
Keywords
