��«����Ƶ

CU ��«����Ƶ anthropologist says ‘Lucy’ is pivotal to the science of human origins a half-century after her discovery

A half-century after her discovery in Ethiopia, the 3.2-million-year-old hominin popularly known as “Lucy” remains a critical touchstone in humanity’s understanding of its origins.

 

Matt Sponheimer, a CU ��«����Ƶ professor of anthropology, notes that the Australopithecus afarensis skeleton known as Lucy is "instantly recognizable in a world awash in fossils."

Officially labeled A.L.288-1, Lucy extended humanity’s ancient history by almost a million years, and she remains a standard to which decades of discoveries have been compared.

“Lucy is instantly recognizable in a world awash in fossils,” says Matt Sponheimer, a ��«����Ƶ professor of anthropology whose research focuses on the ecology of early hominins from the African continent. “She is in many ways a touchstone.”

American anthropologist Donald Johanson first noticed what appeared to be a human-like elbow while out looking for fossils with a graduate student on Nov. 24, 1974, at Afar, Ethiopia, and soon spied multiple fragments nearby. He and his team eventually unearthed 47 remarkably well-preserved bones—about 40% of a complete skeleton—including skull fragments, a mandible with teeth, ribs and pieces of an arm, leg, pelvis and spine.

Lucy was eventually revealed to be an early hominin—a member of a hominid subfamily that includes humans, chimps and bonobos—with a brain about one-third to one-fourth the size of modern humans who walked upright. Research suggests that Lucy’s kind thrived in a wide range of ecosystems, from woodlands to grasslands and riverine forests.

Sharing characteristics of both Australopithecus africanus, a previously discovered hominin from South Africa, and chimpanzees, Lucy was assigned to a new species, Australopithecus afarensis.

Lucy's well-preserved skeleton, comprising about 40% of her body, provided unprecedented insights into early hominin anatomy.

A singular discovery

When Lucy was discovered, she was “singular,” Sponheimer says. But subsequent research has uncovered hundreds of fossils from Australopithecus afarensis as well as other distinct hominin species and footprints of bipedal hominins preserved in volcanic ash.

 

A sculptural reconstruction of the hominin known as Lucy by artist Elisabeth Daynes. (Photo: Elisabeth Daynes)

Despite fifty years of major discoveries, anthropological consensus still considers Lucy a likely ancestor to modern humans. 

Beyond her monumental significance to the scientific understanding of human origins, Lucy has played a key role in educating people about evolution and anthropology.

Her fame and wide recognition have helped spur generations of children’s and students’ interest in the field.  Johanson’s best-selling 1981 book, , is still widely read by popular audiences.

“A huge number of anthropologists were inspired by that book,” Sponheimer says. “When I read it, I remember thinking, ‘Wow, this is the kind of thing I would like to pursue.’”

Years later, he considers not just anthropology but also research in the broader humanities, arts and sciences to be critical to human knowledge and flourishing. He cautions against the unforeseen consequences of American culture’s gradual shift to a more instrumental, economic view of the world.

“Exploring is part of what it means to be human. What’s more human than experiencing wonder and trying to understand the world around us? Tens of thousands of years of archaeology teaches us that. Channeling exploration into a narrow economic field of vision misses the point, I think, and is ultimately self-defeating on the economic front,” he says.

Did you enjoy this article?  Passionate about anthropology? Show your support.