Ancient Bones

A leading palaeontologist discovers the missing link in human evolution.

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 fossilised 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.

‘Splendid and important … Scientifically rigorous and written with a clarity and candour that create a gripping tale … Böhme's account of the history of Europe's lost apes is imbued with the sweat, grime, and triumph that is the lot of the fieldworker, and carries great authority.’
—Tim Flannery, The New York Review of Books

‘An enthralling journey through time and around the world to untangle the complexities of ape and human evolution. Prof. Böhme skilfully intertwines scientific description with the history of fossil discovery and investigation to explain the evolution and biology of our closest relatives. Sometimes controversial but always exciting and engaging, this book is essential reading for those who want to explore alternative perspectives on our origins.’
—Sarah Elton, professor of evolutionary anthropology, Durham University

‘In pursuit of an intriguing if controversial theory of distant human origins, Madelaine Böhme and her colleagues very readably unearth some fascinating history and evoke all the excitement that is inherent in modern paleoanthropological research.’
—Ian Tattersall, co-author of The Accidental Homo Sapiens: Genetics, Behaviour, and Free Will