Penghu 1 mandible, a Denisovan from Taiwan
Mandíbula de Penghu 1, denisovano de Taiwán
- Date
- 2025 · confidence medium
- Place
- Penghu Channel, Taiwan
- Credited to
- Takumi Tsutaya, Frido Welker, Yousuke Kaifu and others
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
The jaw of a man dredged by fishermen from the seabed of the Penghu Channel, identified in 2025 by proteins (palaeoproteomics) as Denisovan. It is the first known Denisovan fossil from outside Siberia and Tibet, and the first from an island.
The fossil was recovered by fishermen and published in Science in 2025; its age is estimated between about 10,000 and 70,000 years or between 130,000 and 190,000 years, depending on the method and the sediment type. No DNA was obtained and the assignment rests on dental proteins.
What it led to
- extension of the Denisovan range to East Asia's south-east
- use of palaeoproteomics to classify fossils without DNA
- debate on the diversity of Pleistocene hominins in East Asia