the world ' s oldest lived child has been discovered in east africa in an object renowned simply as the grave of europe . the 3 . 3 - millions - year - older fossilized preschooler was uncovered in north ethiopian ' s escarpment bordering the great rift river ( map of ethiopia ) . the skeleton , belonging to the primitive human species australopithecus afarensis , is distinguished for its height and proofs , especially for a region fantastically covered in fossils of our ancient ancestors , experts say . the new findings may even trump the superstar dino of the same genus : " lucy , " a 3 . 2 - million - year - old adult male discovered nearby in 1974 that reinvented studies of human ancestry . ( related : " fossil finds is missing link in our evolution , scientists say " [ april 2006 ] . ) .
Lucy fossils have been discovered 3.3 million years ago.