A team of Brazilian archaeologists announced Sunday the discovery of a human fossil in the state of Goiás, in the central part of the country, which could be about 12,000 years old, although its age has yet to be confirmed.
It is an almost complete skeleton discovered at a depth of two meters in excavations on the outskirts of the city of Serranópolis.
Julio Cezar Rubin, from the Pontifical University of Goiás and head of the team responsible for the research, said that initial examinations suggest that the skeleton is between 11,700 and 11,900 years old.
However, he clarified that this information would have to be confirmed by analyses to be carried out later.
Rubin explained that the remains were discovered next to an archaeological zone in 1986, and human fossils with an estimated age of 11,000 years were found.
According to the archaeologist, the investigation in Serranópolis will continue after this discovery because where the skeleton appeared, “there is still at least one meter to be excavated”.
The oldest human fossil in Brazil, Luzia, was found in 1975 in the state of Minas Gerais, neighboring Goiás.
Those remains have been dated 12,500 years old and were on display at the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, partially destroyed by fire in 2018.
Luiza’s skeleton was one of the pieces affected by the flames.
Still, those responsible for the museum managed to restore part of the remains, including the skull of the woman who, so far, is considered the oldest inhabitant of Brazil.
With information from