Fuyan Cave is a complex of limestone caves in Tangbei village, Lefutang town, Daoxian, Hunan province, south central China famous for the discovery of the oldest evidence for unambiguously fully modern humans outside Africa. 47 human teeth, dating to between 80,000 and 120,000 years ago, were discovered at Fuyan Cave. The teeth are also unusual for showing signs of cavities, a feature typically not found in teeth older than 50,000 years.
Geology
Fuyan consists of three caves connected by tunnels. The cave system has a volume of and ranges over.
Discovery
Fuyan Cave was discovered in 1984. The cave is located at latitude 25°39′02.7″N, longitude 111°28′49.2″E, at 232 m above sea level. The cave was excavated in 2011 over an area of. The 2011 excavation revealed 5 hominin teeth and fossil remains from 39 different mammalians species, including some extinct ones. The cave was excavated in 2011 and in 2013. The teeth were all discovered in the middle cave.
Dating
The teeth were dated by dating nearby stalagmites. The stalagmites were dated to at least 80,000 years. Since the teeth were found under rock over which the stalagmites had grown, the teeth must be older than 80,000 years old.
Implications
The discovery is important for many reasons. Previous to this discovery, the earliest evidence for fully modern humans outside the Arabian Peninsula dates to around 40,000 to 50,000 years, so the discovery at Fuyan Cave provides evidence showing that humans migratedout of Africaa lot earlier than previously assumed. Secondly, the finds at Fuyan Cave are much closer to modern humans than they are to contemporary finds at Xujiayao and Qafzeh. Thirdly, the discovery shows that modern humans arrived in southern China when there was an older, more primitive hominin present in northern China. Lastly, the discovery shows that modern humans were present in Asia at a time when there is no evidence for fully modern humans in Europe, which is perhaps explained by the presence of Neanderthals in Europe preventing the entry of the modern humans.
