South Africa 2006 - Origin of Human Kind

1)   Photo

2)   Links 

http://www.sapo.co.za/philately/humankin.htm 

3)   Name 

Origin of Humankind 

4)   Informations

Stamp issue date: 10 November 2006
Artwork: François Durand
Stamp size: 30.45 x 48 mm
Stamp sheet size: 182.25 x 126 mm
Paper: Stamp96/S200/HF80
Gum: Self Adhesive
Quantity printed: 40.000 sheets of 4 stamps
Colour: CMYK
Phosphor: 4 mm in L shape, on 2 stamps left and top of stamp + on 2 stamps right and top of stamp.
Printing process: Offset Lithography
Printed by: Enschedé Security Printers, The Netherlands

List of products:

Stamp set mint
PHL061916
R15.20 Stamp set cancelled
PHL061917
R15.20Control block mint
PHL061918
R15.20Control block cancelled
PHL061919
R15.20Full sheet mint
PHL061920
R15.20

Full sheet cancelled
PHL061921
R15.20Envelope No 7.116
PHL061922
R18.20Handling Fee: R5.00 

5)   Description 

Of the thousands of hominin fossils discovered in South Africa, four extinct fossil species have been identified: Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus, Homo ergaster and Homo heidelbergensis. To commemorate the Origin of Humankind, the South African Post Office issued this set of stamps on 10 November 2006. Dr Francois Durand created the artwork for this stamp issue.

The juvenile ape-man skull depicted on the envelope and canceller was discovered in 1924 by M. de Bruyn while working at the limestone mine near Taung in the Northwest Province. Fossils collected by De Bruyn were sent to Prof. Raymond Dart of the Medical School of the University of the Witwatersrand who found amongst these an endocast of a braincase and the rock from which it came. He then proceeded to extract the face of a baby hominin from the rock. This skull, known as the Taung Child, was the first ape-man to be discovered thereby vindicating Charles Darwin’s prophecy that the fossils of human ancestors would be found in Africa. Dart named it Australopithecus africanus - the “southern ape of Africa” and claimed it to be the Missing Link because of its mixture of ape and human features such as a brain cavity similar in size to that of a chimpanzee, but with more human-like teeth and an upright posture.

Mrs. Ples, the first complete adult ape-man skull discovered, was selected as representative of Australopithecus africanus for the first stamp. Robert Broom discovered it on 18 April 1947 at Sterkfontein in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site (COHWHS). Originally he called this find Plesianthropus transvaalensis, from which the nickname Ples was derived. His co-worker John Robinson later synonimised it with Australopithecus africanus. Due to the difference in size between this new fossil and fragments of a larger one, discovered in 1936, Broom concluded that it might be the skull of a female and dubbed it Mrs. Ples. Australopithecus africanus is estimated to have lived 3.1- 2.1 million years ago. To date the remains of over 600 A. africanus individuals have been discovered at Sterkfontein alone.

The first robust ape-man or Paranthropus robustus fossil was discovered by a schoolboy Gert Terblanche, at Kromdraai in the COHWHS. Robert Broom bought the fossil from him for a few shillings and made Gert show him where he found the fossil. The Paranthropus robustus skull shown was found by André Keyser at Drimolen in the COHWHS. Paranthropus lived approximately 2.2 -1.2 million years ago and was a contemporary of the first members of the genus Homo from which we are descended. Fossils of more than 200 Paranthropus individuals have been found in the COHWHS. Both Australopithecus africanus and Paranthropus robustus are unique to South Africa.

The fragmentary Homo ergaster skull shown was discovered by Robert Broom and John Robinson at Swartkrans in the COHWHS. Hundreds of stone tools and the oldest evidence in the world for the use of fire have been discovered here. Homo ergaster lived between 2-1.6 million years ago. Many Homo ergaster specimens, including beautifully preserved skulls and a virtually complete skeleton, are known from East Africa.

Homo heidelbergensis is known from fossils of more than 50 individuals discovered in Eurasia, East Africa and Elandsfontein, 13 km south west of Hopefield in the Western Cape. Keith Jolly discovered the Elandsfontein hominid, also known as “Saldanha Man” in 1953. Although Homo heidelbergensis had heavy skulls adorned with massive eyebrow ridges, they had the stature and brain capacity equivalent to that of modern humans. These hominids who lived approximately 600 000 to 200 000 years ago, were ancestral to both Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens. In the illustration on the stamp the Saldanha Man cranium was superimposed on the complete Kabwe (or Broken Hill) skull discovered in Zambia.

Some of the oldest Homo sapiens fossils were discovered at Klasiesrivier, in the Huisklip Nature Reserve near Oyster Bay in the Eastern Cape by R. Singer and J. Wymer in 1967-1968. These fossils, dated at 90 000 - 120 000 years show clear affinities with the skulls of anatomically modern human beings. The archaeological excavations under supervision of C. Henshilwood at Blombos in the Western Cape yielded tools and other artifacts such as drilled shells which were used as beads and a piece of ochre marked with a cross-hatch pattern which at 77 000 years, is the oldest art object ever discovered.

The hominid fossils of South Africa which span a period of approximately 3 million years and include several hominid species from the Missing Link to the first true human beings, in addition to some of the oldest stone tools and oldest evidence of the use of fire and art earned South Africa the title of the Cradle of Humankind 

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