The first human fossil of Arabia was recovered from the Al Wusta site in the Nefud Desert of Saudi Arabia. The fossil finger was examined by a group of experts, showing that it fit with our own species, Homo sapiens. The finger was directly dated, as were the sediments on site, to approximately 85,000 years ago. This finding was extremely important, in that it demonstrated that the migration of early populations of early humans was geographically more widespread than previously believed. The fossil finger was associated with Middle Palaeolithic technology, together with fossils of mammals, including hippo. During the time of human occupation, the site would have been on the shores of a freshwater lake, surrounded by grasslands and dunes. For more information, see the extensive news coverage linked on our Media page.
Fossil finger bone representing an early human dispersal into a Green Arabia
