Footprints Believed to be the Oldest in Europe Found

Footprints Believed to be the Oldest in Europe Found

In a paper published in the journal PLOS One, a team of British researchers has found human footprints, which they believe to be the oldest human footprints in Europe.

The footprints that were discovered accidentally are said to be dating back at least 800,000 years. It was in May 2013 that researchers on the beach of Happisburgh along eastern coast of England came across the unusual markings.

The discovery was accidental as the markings were found in drak silt below after strong tides had removed sand from the beach. Lead author Nicholas Ashton from British Museum said they removed the remaining beach sand and carefully sponged off the seawater and then everything was clear that they were human prints.

For now, researchers are not sure about the species that had made these prints. But as per their assessment, footprints are similar to Homo antecessor also known as Pioneer Man. This species has become extinct 600,000 years ago.

Researchers were aware of the fact that the footprints are not going to last longer. Therefore, with the help of photogrammetry and laser scanning techniques, researchers tried to come up with a 3D record of 152 of the prints.

These measures helped researchers to know that the impressions were like a foot and even toe marks were seen. After three weeks, the marks were washed away.

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