The Secret World of Denisovans : The Epic Story of the Ancient Cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals

In December 2010, scientists discovered a fragment of a finger bone in an isolated cave in Siberia. To their surprise, the bone contained neither Homo sapiens nor Neanderthal DNA. The DNA came from a third species of hominids – the Denisovans – who shared a common ancestor with both Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.

This discovery reshaped everything we thought we knew about the “out of Africa” theory. Scientists initially believed that Homo erectus inhabited much of Asia, but looking at Denisovan fossils and the genealogy of native populations in the Philippines reveals that the Denisovans made up a vast population, occupying much of East Asia and Oceania.

But who were the Denisovans? How did they live? What did they look like? Paleoanthropologist Silvana Condemi and science journalist François Savatier tell the Denisovans’ story The Secret World of Denisovans. Leading us through the excavation of the Denisova cave, the sequencing of the Denisovan genome, and recent research on Denisovan fossils, Condemi and Savatier uncover how the Denisovans migrated to Asia, who they interacted with along the way, and why traces of Denisovan DNA can be found in modern-day humans. By studying the story of the Denisovans, we can better understand how humans evolved and populated the globe – and how we are more closely related to our ancient ancestors than we might think.

Contents

Prologue
Part 1: The Third Men
The Enigma
In the Denisova Cave
Denisova, a Human Species?
Denisova Through Its Genes
An Immense Empire in the East
Part 2: Origins
Before Denisova: The Strange Homo erectus
The Earth System, Home to Denisova?
Denisova, Sons of Crossbreeding
The Ancestor of Denisova and Neanderthal
Heading East
The Bamboo Empire
Part 3: In the Denisova Skin
Portrait of Denisova
In Search of Lost Denisovan Fossils
Denisova’s Body and Face Are Back!
Living Denisova
Bibliography
Credits
List of Infographics
Acknowledgments