'Homo floresiensis' and the African Oldowan

Abstract

The small-bodied hominin 'Homo floresiensis' was recently identified at Liang Bua, Flores, Indonesia. Some researchers have argued that 'H. floresiensis' represents pathological individuals from a behaviorally modern 'Homo sapiens' population, arguing in part that the stone-tools found in association are too "advanced" to have been manufactured by a nonmodern hominin. Here we show that the Pleistocene stone-tools from Flores, including Liang Bua, are technologically and morphologically similar to the 1.2–1.9 Mya Oldowan/Developed Oldowan tools from Olduvai Gorge in Africa. The Pleistocene lithic technology on Flores was therefore within the capabilities of small-brained, nonmodern hominins.