Homo georgicus - A dwarf hominid of uncertain status
By Eugene M. McCarthy, Ph.D.
H. georgicus was bipedal, but was tiny and had a small brain. Males stood only about four feet (1.3 m) tall, and the females were even smaller. Although, with respect to overall body size, the individuals in question are far smaller than the size typical of Homo habilis or Homo erectus, it has been suggested that Homo georgicus represents a link between the two (with an age of about 1.8 million years, the remains of H. georgicus date to a period when H. habilis and H. erectus overlapped in time). However, this proposal has not gained acceptance. Cranial measurements of the well-preserved skull D2700 indicate the brain of H. georgicus was about half as large (around 600cc) as that of a modern human being — the smallest of any adult hominid yet found outside Africa other than that of the far more recent Homo floresiensis. Tooth-wear patterns and remains found at the site show H. georgicus had an omnivorous diet, but there is no evidence of the use of fire. Crude stone tools have been found in association with the remains (see stone chopper from the Dmanisi site). The dwarf morphology of this peculiar form has stymied efforts to place the H. georgicus piece in the overall hominid puzzle. Since both earlier and later hominids were larger it's hard to see how this particular form might fit in. Since these fossils were found on the western shore of the Black Sea, it is not even clear — as some have claimed — that H. georgicus was the first hominid to settle in Europe. The oldest human remains found on actual European soil are those found in the Sima del Elefante in Spain, which date to 1.1–1.2 mya (Carbonell et al. 2008). For the present, it's fair to say only that H. georgicus represents a new and perplexing twig on the hominid bush.
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