Dr. T. Tóth szerk.: Studia historico-anthropologica (Anthropologia Hungarica 20. Budapest, 1988)

ANTHROPOLOGIA HÜNCARICA XX. 1988 p. 5-7 On early prehominization By T. TÓTH (Received January 7, 1988) Abstract. The fossil primate finds, especially the Rudabánya specimen No. 77 (RUD-77), represent a very significant group on account of the early steps in human evolution. Having in mind the brief account of this subject, first of all, one has to pay attention to the investigations done in the last three decades (KRET7.0I 1969, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1984; MORBECK 1983; KORDOS 1982, 1985; WOLPOFF 1980). The excavation of a rich fossil primate material enables us to outline in a well-established way the earliest (hominoid) period of the hominization. The starting and final steps in the broad chronological amplitude of the Miocene-Pliocene period are indicated by tne taxa Proconsul-Ramapithecus , which existed in the intervall from 18 till 8 myrs. The osteological finds necessary for the analyses of the problems connected with early prehominization were presented by systematic excavations on the territory of three continents of the Old World. Earlier the excavations were concentrated on certain geographical zones of East Africa and South Asia. But the Hominoidea-remains found at Rudabánya in northeastern Hungary since 1967 extended territorially the ecological niche of the fossil Primates (KORDOS 1982, 1985, 1987a, b). Until 1988 eighty primate finds have been excavated at Rudabánya from strata of about 10 n.vrs (Lower Pannonian

3 Late Miocene, Early Vallesian). The phylogenetically most significant skull-find (RUD-77) belonging to this group indicates the re-evaluation of the theoretical variations. It should be noted that the chronology of the Hominoids from Rudabánya may be interpreted in a broader sense too: according to MORBECK (1983) above-mentioned finds ". . . are several million years younger than the Fort Ternan Ramapithecus wickeri and older than Ramapithecus, Sivapithecus

, and Gigantopithecus from Potwar Plateau, Pakistan" (op. cit. p. 371). After a press-conference, which was held in the Hungarian Geological Institute on 11 December 1986, L. KORDOS delivered a lecture during a scientific session on the presented Rjjd^pjthecus_ skull (RUD-77) reconstructed by him. From the 101 bone-fragments 24 were suitable for osteoanatomical piecing together in the vault and orbital regions. The bonefragments of determinable position taken by him into consideration are as follows: subnasal maxillary bone, zygomatic bone-fragment, sphenoidal bone-fragment near to foramen magnum, occipital bone-fragment with a protuberance (KORDOS 1987a, b). By the way, he succeeded in piecing together the left upper tooth row (p3.

M

3) as well as the right upper one (M^-M^) with a palatine bone-fragment. All of these finds were presented by him on 22 January 1987 in our Department where he was lecturing about the phylogenetical significance of them with the object to iniciate a discussion - as it was proposed by the author of the present paper to KORDOS. Disputed was the reality of the sex-determination of RUD-77, because the os coxae of this specimen has not yet been found. Further, the relatively high orientation of the position of foramen magnum in the occipital section df the median-ságittal contour was also disputed. KORDOS himself has given an overall evaluation according to the determinable osteoanatomical position of the given bones, not regarding his conclusions as final ones. This is well expressed in his papers about the Rudapithecus cranium (1987a, b). In these papers he draws the attention to the fact that not only the supraorbital tori are missing, but al-