Homo Naledi Is Not Supposed To Exist, Yet It Does

Homo naledi shouldn’t exist. Discovered in 2013 within South Africa’s Rising Star Cave, this mysterious hominin species dates back 250,000 years—yet shows behaviors previously thought exclusive to modern humans. With a brain only 465–610 cm³, about a third the size of ours, Homo naledi may have buried its dead, used tools, and possibly even controlled fire. These cognitive behaviors appearing in a small-brained species break our understanding of the human evolutionary timeline. How could such a primitive form of human show signs of symbolic thought? What else is waiting in the dark, rewriting our history? Science doesn’t have all the answers—but the bones don’t lie.