Detail map of Marsabit County, Kenya Overview map of Marsabit County, Kenya

A: Marsabit County, Kenya

The Most Complete Early Human Skeleton

Circa 1.5 million BCE
Fossil skull and jawbone of Turkana Boy. (Click on image to view larger.)

Fossil skull and jawbone of Turkana Boy. (Click on image to view larger.)

In 1984 Kamoya Kimeu, a member of a team led by Richard Leakey, discovered the Turkana Boy (Nariokotome Boy) at Nariokotome near Lake Turkana in Kenya.  Scientifically identified as fossil KNM-WT 15000 (Kenya National Museum, West Turkana, item 15000), this nearly complete skeleton of a hominid who died in the early Pleistocene, 1.5 million years ago, is the most complete early human skeleton ever found. It was once thought to be a member of the species Homo erectus, but after much debate, was classified as Homo ergaster.  

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