Sterkfontein Caves
Sterkfontein
South Africa · Gauteng
In brief
Fossils related to human evolution and early stone tool technologies are being investigated in the cave deposits. Mrs Ples and the largely preserved Little Foot skeleton are the site's best-known finds.
What was found?
- 1Mrs Ples skull
This is a largely preserved adult skull belonging to the species Australopithecus africanus. By showing that the species was not represented solely by young individuals, it played an important role in debates about the Taung Child.
- 2Little Foot skeleton
This is an almost completely preserved Australopithecus skeleton. It allows locomotion to be investigated by comparing different parts of the body in the same individual.
- 3Stone tools
Examples of early stone tool technologies have been found in the cave deposits. They document the long history of tool use in South Africa.
- 4Animal fossils
Alongside fossils of human relatives, there are abundant animal remains. They help researchers understand the region's ancient environment and ecological changes over time.
What does it point to?
Sterkfontein allows human evolution to be investigated together with body structure, technology and environment. According to researchers, Little Foot's anatomy suggests that features suited to walking on two legs on the ground and climbing trees could coexist.
What did it teach us?
- Adult Australopithecus africanus fossils weakened the objection that the Taung Child was a young chimpanzee.
- It showed that bipedal locomotion and anatomy suited to climbing could coexist in the same individual.
- Fossils and stone tools jointly documented the region's biological and technological past.
Images




Record
- Culture
- Oldowan and Acheulean
- First modern dig
- 1936
- Team / historical
- University of the Witwatersrand
- Coordinates
- -26.0166°, 27.7336°
Sources
- sterkfonteincaves.wits.ac.za
- whc.unesco.org
- whc.unesco.org
- wits.ac.za
- Smithsonian Institution — STS 5
- Witwatersrand Üniversitesi — Sterkfontein araştırmaları
Nearby excavations
- Border Cave 438 km
- Mapungubwe Hill 452 km
- Wonderwerk Cave 461 km
- Sibhudu Cave 511 km
- Pomongwe Cave 613 km
- Bambata Cave 617 km
- —
- —
- 12.000
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