Fossil Site of Eosimias sinensis

Fossil Site of Eosimias sinensis

The Fossil Site of Eosimias sinensis is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Era: Paleolithic Age

In 1985, paleoanthropologist Lin Yipu discovered some ancient mammal fossils in the fissure fillings of a quarry at Shuimu Mountain in Shanghuang Town, Shangyang County (now Liyang City), Jiangsu Province. Qi Tao identified some of the teeth as being similar to those of the ancient lagomorph found in Inner Mongolia, leading to the conclusion that the animal possessing these teeth lived during the early Tertiary period (between 65 million and 24 million years ago). Starting in 1992, renowned paleo-vertebrate paleontologist Mary Dawson from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, along with paleoprimatologist Christopher Beard, and Qi Tao, Wang Banyue, Li Chuanqui, and Guo Jianwei from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, formed a joint research team. They conducted further field investigations in the Shanghuang area and surrounding regions, carrying out in-depth studies on the primate-rich Shanghuang Fauna and related faunas. Subsequent work uncovered at least four species of higher primates, one of which was named Eosimias sinensis, while the other three required further excavation and study due to insufficient material at the time. The fossil material of Eosimias sinensis consisted only of a fragment of a right lower jaw with three teeth and some scattered teeth. However, its age dates back to the Middle Eocene, approximately 45 million years ago—nearly 10 million years earlier than the higher primates found in Fayum. This suggests that the origin of higher primates is more likely to have been in the East, specifically in China. The term "Shuimian" (曙猿) means "the dawn of the suborder Anthropoidea." In May 2013, it was designated and announced by the State Council as part of the seventh batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units