Abstract:
Numerous aspects of early hominin biology remain debated or simply unknown.
However, recent developments in high-resolution imaging techniques have opened new avenues in
the field of paleoanthropology. More specifically, X-ray synchrotron-based analytical imaging
techniques have the potential to provide crucial details on the ontogeny, physiology, biomechanics,
and biological identity of fossil specimens. Here we present preliminary results of our X-ray
synchrotron-based investigation of the skull of the 3.67-million-year-old Australopithecus specimen
StW 573 (‘Little Foot’) at the I12 beamline of the Diamond Light Source (United Kingdom). Besides
showing fine details of the enamel (i.e., hypoplasias) and cementum (i.e., incremental lines), as well
as of the cranial bone microarchitecture (e.g., diploic channels), our synchrotron-based investigation
reveals for the first time the 3D spatial organization of the Haversian systems in the mandibular
symphysis of an early hominin.
