page_title: Java Man
section_title: Physical characteristics
hierarchical_section_title: Java Man / Physical characteristics
caption_attribution_description: After a model by J. H. McGregor. PROFILE VIEW OF HEAD OF PITHECANTHROPUS, THE JAVA APE MAN, RECONSTRUCTED FROM THE SKULL-CAP.
context_page_description: Java Man is an early human fossil discovered in 1891 and 1892 on the island of Java. Estimated to be between 700,000 and 1,000,000 years old, it was, at the time of its discovery, the oldest hominid fossils ever found, and it remains the type specimen for Homo erectus.
  Led by Eugène Dubois, the excavation team uncovered a tooth, a skullcap, and a thighbone at Trinil on the banks of the Solo River in East Java. Arguing that the fossils represented the "missing link" between apes and humans, Dubois gave the species the scientific name Anthropopithecus erectus, then later renamed it Pithecanthropus erectus. The fossil aroused much controversy. Less than ten years after 1891, almost eighty books or articles had been published on Dubois's finds. Despite Dubois's argument, few accepted that Java Man was a transitional form between apes and humans. Some dismissed the fossils as apes and others as modern humans, whereas many scientists considered Java Man as a primitive side branch of evolution not related to modern humans at all.
context_section_description: Java Man was about 5 feet 8 inches (173 cm) tall and his thighbones show that he walked erect like modern humans. The femur is thicker than that of a modern human, indicating he was engaging in a lot of running. The skull was characterized by thick bones and a retreating forehead and no chin, as well as protruding browridges and a massive jaw. At 900 ccm, his cranial capacity was smaller than that of later H. erectus specimens. He had human teeth with large canines. Judging from anatomical and archeological aspects as well as Java Man's ecological role, meat from vertebrates was likely an important part of their diet. Java Man, like other Homo erectus, was probably a rare species. There is evidence that Java Man used shell tools to cut meat.
caption: A 1922 reconstruction of the skull of Java Man (based on Trinil 2).
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