Australopithecus africanus
Cranium Sts 5 "Mrs. Ples" - 2.5 Million Years Ago
The Australopithecus africanus Skull Sts 5 "Mrs. Ples" was discovered in 1947 by R. Broom and J. Robinson in Sterkfontein, Transvaal, South Africa. Originally thought by Broom to be a female, Sts 5 is now considered by most to be a male. The discovery of this nearly complete cranium of a mature specimen led to a much more positive reception of South African australopithecines as hominins. Twenty years earlier Raymond Dart labeled a skull found at Taung "Australopithecus africanus." The dentition of that skull indicates that it was a juvenile, which led to much criticism and broad dismissal of Dart's contention that the skull was a hominin; instead, critics considered it an ape. Like other early hominins, Sts 5 had an ape-sized brain with a cranial capacity of about 485 cc. Compared to Australopithecus afarensis, it has a more rounded skull, a less projecting face, an absence of cranial crests, and smaller front teeth. However, the front teeth are larger than in Paranthropus sp. (robust australopithecines) such as boisei. The cheek teeth are larger than in Australopithecus afarensis but smaller than in Paranthropus sp.
- Hominin Skulls - Select a Species
- Ardipithecus kadabba
- Ardipithecus ramidus
- Australopithecus afarensis
- Australopithecus africanus
- Australopithecus anamensis
- Australopithecus garhi
- Australopithecus sediba
- Denisovans
- Homo antecessor
- Homo erectus
- Homo floresiensis
- Homo habilis
- Homo heidelbergensis
- Homo naledi
- Homo neanderthalensis
- Homo rudolfensis
- Homo sapiens
- Kenyanthropus platyops
- Ororrin tugenensis
- Paranthropus aethiopicus
- Paranthropus boisei
- Paranthropus robustus
- Sahelanthropus tchadensis
