Remains raise questions on human origin

A Tel Aviv University team excavating a cave in central Israel said teeth found there are about 400,000 years old and resemble those of other remains of modern man, known scientifically as Homo sapiens, found in Israel. The earliest Homo sapiens remains found until now are half as old.

“It’s very exciting to come to this conclusion,’’ said archeologist Avi Gopher, whose team examined the teeth with X-rays and CT scans and dated them according to the layers of earth where they were found.

He stressed that further research is needed to solidify the claim. If it does, he says, “this changes the whole picture of evolution.’’

The accepted scientific theory is that Homo sapiens originated in Africa and migrated out of the continent. Gopher said if the remains are definitively linked to modern human’s ancestors, it could mean that modern man in fact originated in what is now Israel.

Sir Paul Mellars, a prehistory expert at Cambridge University, said the study is reputable, and the find is important because remains from that critical time period are scarce, but it is premature to say the remains are human.

“Based on the evidence they’ve sited, it’s a very tenuous and frankly rather remote possibility,’’ Mellars said.

He said the remains are more likely related to modern man’s ancient relatives, the Neanderthals.