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Social Science Physical

Ancient Bones

by (author) Rüdiger Braun, Madelaine Böhme & Florian Breier

read by Aimée Ayotte

foreword by David R. Begun

Publisher
Greystone Books Ltd
Initial publish date
Oct 2020
Category
Physical, Paleontology, Expeditions & Discoveries
  • Downloadable audio file

    ISBN
    9781771647533
    Publish Date
    Oct 2020
    List Price
    $34.95

Classroom Resources

Where to buy it

Description

A thrilling new account of human origins, as told by the paleontologist who led the most groundbreaking dig in recent history.

Somewhere west of Munich, Madelaine Böhme and her colleagues dig for clues to the origins of humankind. What they discover is beyond anything they imagined: the fossilized bones of Danuvius guggenmosi ignite a global media frenzy. This ancient ancestor defies our knowledge of human history—his nearly twelve-million-year-old bones were not located in Africa—the so-called birthplace of humanity—but in Europe, and his features suggest we evolved much differently than scientists once believed.

In prose that reads like a gripping detective novel, Ancient Bones interweaves the story of the dig that changed everything with the fascinating answer to a previously undecided and now pressing question: How, exactly, did we become human? Placing Böhme’s discovery alongside former theories of human evolution, the authors show how this remarkable find (and others in Eurasia) are forcing us to rethink the story we’ve been told about how we came to be, a story that has been our guiding narrative—until now.

About the authors

Contributor Notes

MADELAINE BÖHME is a scientist, professor at the University of Tübingen, and founding director of the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment.

RÜDIGER BRAUN is a journalist who translates cutting-edge science into gripping stories to affect societal change.

FLORIAN BREIER is a journalist, filmmaker, and writer for various television networks.