the land ' s oldest known woman has been discovered in east africa in an area defined appropriately as the heartland of intelligence . the 3 . 3 - million - year - old fossilized toddler was recovered in north india ' s badlands around the great rift valley ( map of ethiopia ) . the skeleton , corresponding to the young human species australopithecus afarensis , is unique for its age and completeness , even for a location spectacularly rich in fossils of our older ancestors , officials say . the new find perhaps even trump the legendary fossil of the same species : " lucy , " a 3 . 2 - thousand - year - old adult female discovered there in 1974 that drastically theories of human evolution . ( related : " fossil find is found link in human evolution , scientists say " [ april 2006 ] . ) .
Lucy fossils have been discovered 3.3 million years ago.