A human facial fragment discovered in 2022 at the Sima del Elefante site (Sierra de Atapuerca, Burgos) and dated between 1.1 and 1.4 million years ago represents the oldest known face in Western Europe. This fossil, cataloged as ATE7-1, has been assigned to Homo affinis erectus and provides crucial insights into early migrations and hominin evolution in Europe during the Early Pleistocene.

The findings have been published in Nature, with the study led by Dr. Rosa Huguet, a researcher at IPHES-CERCA, associate professor at Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), and co-coordinator—alongside Dr. Xosé Pedro Rodríguez-Álvarez, a researcher at URV—of excavation and research efforts at Sima del Elefante. The study is the result of a collaborative effort involving a diverse team of researchers and technical staff from IPHES-CERCA and URV, along with national and international institutions, most notably the National Research Center on Human Evolution (CENIEH).

More Erectus than Antecessor

During the 2022 excavation campaign, the Atapuerca Research Team (EIA) recovered several fragments of the left side of an adult individual's face from level TE7 at Sima del Elefante. Reconstructing these fragments required meticulous work, combining traditional conservation and restoration techniques with advanced imaging and 3D analysis tools.

After two years of research, a detailed analysis of ATE7-1 ("Pink") has revealed that this face does not belong to Homo antecessor, the species identified at the Gran Dolina site, but rather to a more primitive hominin. However, the available evidence remains insufficient for a definitive taxonomic classification. As a result, it has been provisionally assigned to Homo affinis erectus (H. aff. erectus).

Dr. María Martinón-Torres, director of CENIEH and a lead researcher of the Atapuerca Project, explains: "Homo antecessor shares with Homo sapiens a more modern-looking face and a prominent nasal bone structure, whereas Pink’s facial features are more primitive, resembling Homo erectus, particularly in its flat and underdeveloped nasal structure." However, she emphasizes, "The evidence is still insufficient for a definitive classification, which is why it has been assigned to H. aff. erectus. This designation acknowledges Pink’s affinities with Homo erectus while leaving open the possibility that it may belong to another species."

Dated between 1.1 and 1.4 million years old, the ATE7-1 fossil is significantly older than the remains of Homo antecessor, estimated to be around 860,000 years old. This chronology suggests that Pink belonged to a population that arrived in Europe during a migration wave predating that of Homo antecessor.

Environment and Lifestyle

Level TE7 of Sima del Elefante where ATE7-1 was discovered, holds abundant evidence of hominin presence and activity during the Early Pleistocene. Among these findings, researchers recovered stone tools and animal remains with cut marks, pointing to the use of lithic technology for processing animals.

Dr. Xosé Pedro Rodríguez-Álvarez, a specialist in lithic industries, explains: "Although the quartz and flint tools found are simple, they suggest an effective subsistence strategy and highlight the hominins' ability to exploit the resources available in their environment."

Cut marks identified on animal remains provide clear evidence that these tools were used to butcher carcasses. Dr. Rosa Huguet, a taphonomy expert, adds: "These practices demonstrate that the first Europeans had an intimate understanding of available animal resources and knew how to systematically exploit them."

Paleoecological data from TE7 suggest that the Early Pleistocene landscape of the Sierra de Atapuerca was a dynamic environment, featuring a mix of wooded areas, wet grasslands, and seasonal water sources—creating a resource-rich habitat for these early human populations.

A Key Milestone for the Atapuerca Project

The discovery of ATE7-1 represents a major milestone for the Atapuerca Project and our understanding of human settlement in Europe. According to Dr. Marina Mosquera, director of IPHES-CERCA and one of the leading researchers of the Atapuerca Project: “This site is crucial for understanding our origins, and this new discovery further solidifies Atapuerca’s position as a global leader in the study of human evolution.” Mosquera also notes, “Leading and coordinating excavation work at these sites not only deepens our understanding of human origins but also elevates the name of IPHES-CERCA and the research conducted in Tarragona on the international stage, reinforcing our role as a premier center for human evolution research.”

In a similar vein, Martinón-Torres emphasizes CENIEH's pioneering role as an ICTS (Singular Scientific and Technical Facility), stating: “Here, we’ve applied future techniques and methods to investigate the past,” referring to the advanced reconstruction and virtual analysis work that led to the classification of ATE7-1 as belonging to a previously unknown population in Europe.

The fossil not only enhances our knowledge of Europe’s earliest inhabitants but also raises new questions about the origin and diversity of the hominins who lived there. Dr. Eudald Carbonell, co-director of the Atapuerca Project, explains: “The discovery of evidence for different hominin populations in Western Europe during the Early Pleistocene suggests that this region was a key point in the evolutionary history of the genus Homo.”

Dr. José María Bermúdez de Castro, co-director of the Atapuerca Project and co-author of the study, concludes: “This discovery heralds another prodigious era for the Atapuerca Project.”

The research team expects that future discoveries and analyses will help refine our understanding of the origin and dynamics of early human settlement in Europe.

Excavations at the Atapuerca sites, funded by the Consejería de Cultura, Turismo y Deporte de Castilla y León and supported by the Fundación Atapuerca and its patrons, and the research of these findings, backed by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, could provide further data on the migratory waves that shaped human history.