DStv Channel 403 Saturday, 09 November 2024

Cradle of Humankind ... not such an old fossil

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa's world heritage site, the Cradle of Humankind, may be much younger than initially thought.

The site is believed to be about four million years old.

But now new dating methods suggest suggests it may not be that old.

READ: East Africa may lose its crown as 'cradle of mankind'

This is according to a paper by Tara Edwards from UCT's Geological Sciences Department.

"What we're going to do is go back to that site and use some more scientific methods, multiple methods of dating, geonochronological dating, so we can say with certainty that the site is not older than 2.2 million years," Edwards said.

"It's still enjoyable to go and visit and a great place to take your family and the kids to learn about rocks and heritage and fossils.

"It's just that we can say scientifically it's not a million years old."

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