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" Descriptions and comparative studies of the hominin dental remains from Dmanisi, Georgia: 1991–2002 collections "
P. James Macaluso, Jr.
G. P. Rightmire
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Latin Dissertation
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English
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| Record Number
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52522
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| Doc. No
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TL22476
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| Call number
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3241617
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| Main Entry
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P. James Macaluso, Jr.
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| Title & Author
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Descriptions and comparative studies of the hominin dental remains from Dmanisi, Georgia: 1991–2002 collections\ P. James Macaluso, Jr.
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| College
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State University of New York at Binghamton
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| Date
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2006
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Ph.D.
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2006
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| Page No
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298
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| Abstract
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This paper provides a systematic study of the hominin dental remains recovered from Dmanisi between 1991 and 2002. The sample includes teeth from three mandibles, two crania, and a number of isolated but associated finds, which together represent three individuals. The goals of this research are to document the teeth through measurements and descriptions, to analyze patterns of morphological variation within the sample, and to establish possible evolutionary relationships between the Dmanisi remains and other early groups of the genus Homo. When the results of the bootstrap analyses of the metric variables and morphological comparisons are considered, the case for taxonomic heterogeneity within the Georgian dental sample is finely balanced. For most variables, the size range and morphological variation among the Dmanisi specimens can be accommodated within models of dimorphism based on extant and extinct analogues. Hominins no. 1 (D211, D2282) and no. 3 (D2735, D2700) can be grouped together without reservation. Whether hominin no. 2 (D2600) should be included within this sample is more questionable. Nonetheless, the current dental evidence is insufficient to reject the hypothesis that a single taxon is represented at Dmanisi. The variability displayed by the Georgian specimens may be attributable to a high level of sexual dimorphism. The Dmanisi hominins exhibit a trend towards the reduction of the posterior dentition shared with H. erectus, while retaining narrow anterior teeth and primitive dental morphology inherited from earlier Homo. The simultaneous presence of these features suggests that the Georgian hominins occupy a position close to, or slightly more primitive than, early African and Indonesian H. erectus. The Dmanisi population also presents traits that appear to be unique including mesiodistal expansion of the anterior dentition and marked reduction of the P4 and M3. Given the geographic distance between the sites, many of the differences between the Georgian teeth and specimens comprising the other regional samples may reasonably be attributed to geographic variation. The Georgian population is probably best considered a geographical variant of early H. erectus. Dental evidence also suggests that Dmanisi could represent the population ancestral to later H. erectus groups exhibiting more advanced morphology.
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| Subject
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Social sciences; Dental remains; Dmanisi; Georgia (Republic); Hominin; Physical anthropology; 0327:Physical anthropology
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G. P. Rightmire
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State University of New York at Binghamton
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