Study Says Hominids May Have Entered Europe Via the Strait of Gibraltar 900,000 Years Ago

Researchers at the University of Barcelona believe that they may have evidence that hominids entered Europe through the south of the Iberian Peninsula 900,000 years ago. Evidence for their claim comes from a new dating of African hominid and primate remains that were found in the Victoria Cave in Cartagena, Spain.

Lluís Gibert, researcher and professor in the Faculty of Geology at the University of Barcelona told the news agency SINC:

“Until now, the dominant theory asserts that the human migration from Africa to Europe took place by going north around the Mediterranean and arriving at the peninsula through the Pyrenees; but our work, and others before, suggest that hominids came from the south on different occasions. Previous studies of different hominid remains, lithics, and African fauna in the Orce (Baza basin, Granada) sites, have already suggested a migration from the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula around 1.3 million years ago, independently from other hominids that tried to go around the Mediterranean.”

The study has focused on new fossils found in the cave and stone tools (from the same period) unearthed in a nearby settlement, during a coincidental drop in the sea level. This research also included other experts at the University of Barcelona, such as Carles Ferràndez and María Lería.