Paige Madison
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fossilhistory.bsky.social
Paige Madison
@fossilhistory.bsky.social
4.2K followers 370 following 240 posts
Science writer. Writing a book on hobbits and human origins. Editor PBS Eons. History of science PhD.
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fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 2004, we were introduced to "a stranger from Flores," a new species of human called Homo floresiensis. @chrisbstringer.bsky.social's thoughts at the time on the big (or small) surprise: go.nature.com/34s9xbM 🏺🧪
Cover of the 28 October 2004 issue of Nature magazine featuring the skull and jaw of Homo floresiensis. A researcher’s hand steadies the small, brown-stained skull, which rests beside a lower jaw on a white surface. The headline reads “Short for her age: Third Asian Homo species reveals diversity of Pleistocene humanity.”
October 28, 2025 at 11:12 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
The fossils of a potential ancestor, Orrorin tugenensis, were found #OnThisDay in 2000 in Kenya. The bones give us hints about early experiments in walking upright. 🏺
Fragmented fossilized femur bones attributed to Orrorin tugenensis, arranged against a black background. The pieces include multiple partial shafts (3) including a mostly complete femur, and fragments, showing varying degrees of preservation and reddish-brown mineralization,
October 21, 2025 at 2:49 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Revisiting old Liang Bua documentaries and getting a kick out of this scene. 🏺
October 15, 2025 at 2:18 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
That was something else.
A woman stands in front of a grand stone building with ornate balustrades and columns. Behind her, a large vertical banner shows the face of an Australopithecus afarensis fossil reconstruction, advertising an exhibition titled Lucy & Selam. The woman is smiling slightly at the camera, with long blonde hair and a nose ring, wearing a dark jacket.
October 3, 2025 at 3:20 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 2009, after years of preparation, Ardipithecus ramidus was unveiled. The stunningly old 4.4 million-year-old fossils from Ethiopia were introduced as "a new kind of ancestor."
Fossilized skeletal remains of Ardipithecus ramidus, against a black background. The partial skeleton includes the skull, pelvis, arms, hands, legs, and feet, with many bones fragmented but laid out in ~approximate anatomical position.
October 2, 2025 at 10:18 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 1861, Charles Darwin wrote to his friend "But I am very poorly today and very stupid and hate everybody and everything." n.pr/3kVZvon
Black-and-white portrait photograph of an older man , darwin, with a long, full white beard and receding hairline, wearing a dark coat. He looks to the right in a serious, contemplative pose. A small piece of handwritten text in cursive ink on paper, difficult to read but appearing to say: “But I am very poorly today & very stupid & hate everybody & everything.”
October 1, 2025 at 6:12 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Our famous ancestor Lucy is on display in Prague. I visited the exhibit and wrote up some early thoughts about the experience:
paigemadison.substack.com/p/circling-lucy
📸Czech Tourism
A life-like reconstruction of the fossil hominin “Lucy” (Australopithecus afarensis) created by Élisabeth Daynès. She is shown standing upright with dark hair and skin, gazing slightly to the side. She is holding green foliage to her lips. The rest of the room is dark.
September 30, 2025 at 10:55 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Prague’s history spans centuries, but what I’m here chasing is measured in millions.
📍Aria Hotel Prague
A narrow courtyard enclosed by ornate, historic buildings with cream-colored walls decorated in geometric and sculpted patterns. The upper floors feature arched windows and frescoed arches beneath a red-tiled roof. Sunlight strikes one corner, while above, a patch of blue sky and white clouds is visible.
September 30, 2025 at 9:20 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Prague’s oldest Baroque garden, the Vrtba, has stood carved into this hillside since 1720. Now a UNESCO World Heritage site, it's situated within a neighborhood first mapped in 1257. Centuries of history 🤯
📍Aria Hotel Prague
View of the Vrtba Garden in Prague, a terraced Baroque garden built into the slope of Petřín Hill. Green hedges, statues, and stairways rise in levels up the hillside, with the white and yellow buildings, red rooftops, and green domes of Malá Strana visible beyond. The sky is blue with white, puffy clouds spread throughout.
September 29, 2025 at 2:05 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
A grand place for Lucy to make her European debut.
📍 Národní muzeum
Grand interior of the National Museum in Prague, featuring a sweeping marble staircase lined with red carpets, ornate columns, and golden lamps. Busts of historical figures line the upper level beneath a decorative arched gallery, and the ceiling is made of elaborately patterned glass panels that let in natural light. Visitors walk up and down the staircases, giving a sense of scale to the opulent architecture.
September 28, 2025 at 1:00 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Honestly a little speechless. Looking forward to spending the next few days here. 🏺
📍Narodni Muzeum
The front façade of the National Museum in Prague, with ornate statues, columns, and a fountain in the foreground. Large vertical banners hang between the columns, one reading “Lucy & Selam” and another showing a hominin face, advertising the exhibition inside. The sky above is overcast.
September 27, 2025 at 11:14 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
What do you mean it’s already the fall equinox? Summer disappeared in a blur of book revisions.
Upward view of the grand arched entrance of the Natural History Museum in London, with alternating bands of cream and blue-gray terracotta tiles, ornate carvings of animals above arched windows, and two towers rising against a blue sky. Row of colorful buildings along Nyhavn in Copenhagen reflected in the still water of the canal, with a bright red boat docked in front under a blue evening sky.
September 22, 2025 at 3:05 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Buckle up, gang. We're headed back in time. 🏺
paigemadison.substack.com/p/lets-go-se...
September 18, 2025 at 11:20 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Welp. Following a fossil across Europe wasn't exactly in my September plans, but here we are. Lucy's in Prague, so naturally, I'm right behind her. Headed there soon.
Fossilized skeletal remains of Lucy (Australopithecus afarensis) laid out on a black background, showing partial skeleton including parts of a skull, spine, ribs, pelvis, and limb bones arranged in anatomical position. The bones are tan and beige in color, representing approximately 40% of the complete skeleton.
September 10, 2025 at 5:52 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
From the archives: looking back on when Lucy was on display in the U.S in 2009. Millions of years collapse when you see an ancestor under glass. She’s so much smaller than you expect. 🏺🧪
September 9, 2025 at 3:04 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Lucy is currently on display for the first time in Europe. 🏺
Museum display case containing fossilized bone fragments of Lucy, the famous Australopithecus afarensis specimen. The ancient hominin fossils are arranged on a dark surface under protective glass, showing various skeletal remains including what appear to be skull fragments, jaw pieces, and other bone fragments. The 3.2 million-year-old fossils are displayed with dramatic lighting against a dark background, with reflections visible in the glass case above. The fragments vary in size and show the characteristic brown coloration of fossilized bone.
September 8, 2025 at 5:43 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
The hobbit (Homo floresiensis) was discovered #OnThisDay in 2003. Here she is that day in all her smallness, still embedded in the cave floor of Liang Bua. 📸 Wahyu Saptomo
Partial skeletal remains of Homo floresiensis lying in reddish-brown cave floor sediment, including a skull and leg bones. A black-and-white measuring scale below the bones indicates 50 cm for reference.
September 2, 2025 at 10:52 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
The fossil on my mind today (and in the book chapter I'm currently revising) from Ileret, Kenya. What an interesting, smalled-brained little one. 🧠🏺 KNM-ER 42700
Photographs of the fossil hominin skull KNM-ER 42700 and partial maxilla KNM-ER 42703 shown from multiple angles. Panels a–e show the calvaria (skullcap) of KNM-ER 42700: anterior view (a), left lateral (b), posterior (c), superior (d), and inferior with visible foramen magnum (e). Panels f–h show KNM-ER 42703 partial maxilla: anterior (f), occlusal with teeth visible (g), and right lateral view (h). Scale bars: 5 cm for skull, 2 cm for maxilla.
August 31, 2025 at 11:39 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 1936, Robert Broom visited South Africa's Sterkfontein Cave for the first time. He asked the quarry owner if they’d ever found “anything like the Taung skull,” the first Australopithecus. The owner’s reply: yep. 🏺🧪
Black-and-white photograph of five men sitting and standing in a rocky excavation site. Two older men in the foreground wear light-colored shirts, one with a vest, while three men in the background, wearing work clothes and hats, are positioned among the rock walls, one holding a shovel. The man in a vest is pointing to a place in the rock where a fossil had been found.
August 9, 2025 at 12:57 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Discoverer of many fossil human ancestors and promotor of the science of human origins Louis Leakey was born #OnThisDay in 1903. 🏺🧪
📸 Leakey Foundation
Alt text: Black-and-white photo of a man seated at a table with five hominin and primate skulls arranged in front of him.. He wears a short sleeved collared shirt. Behind him are shelves filled with books and journals.
August 7, 2025 at 2:18 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
It's easy to see the string of Indonesian islands west to east as the path to Flores (Sumatra --> Java --> Lombok). But, because of ocean currents, many think Homo floresiensis' ancestors actually came from the north, Sulawesi. Now there's a compelling clue. 📸: theconversation.com/this-stone-t...
Map showing the islands of Southeast Asia, including Flores in Indonesia. The map highlights Wallacea, the region between the Asian and Australian continental shelves, illustrating hominin fossil sites. Landmasses, sea barriers, and site markers are shown to indicate discovery locations.
August 6, 2025 at 3:16 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
#OnThisDay in 1908, the remarkable Neanderthal known as the Old Man from La Chapelle was discovered. 🏺🧪
A black-and-white photograph of a Neanderthal skull in right profile view, displayed on a small pedestal. The cranium shows a large, irregular hole on the parietal region. The skull has a robust brow ridge, receding forehead, and protruding midface. The mandible is present. A frontal black-and-white photograph of the same Neanderthal skull. The orbits are large and round, and the nasal opening is broad. The brow ridges are thick and prominent. The maxilla and mandible are both incomplete, with several missing teeth and broken portions along the lower jaw.
August 3, 2025 at 4:34 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Copenhagen looks different now, funny how that works. Feels good to be back.
A view of Nyhavn, Copenhagen at sunrise, showing a row of colorful 17th- and 18th-century townhouses in shades of white, yellow, red, pink, and blue. A bright red and white boat is docked in the calm canal, perfectly mirrored in the still water below. The sky is soft blue with scattered clouds, and the reflections create a nearly symmetrical composition.
July 24, 2025 at 12:13 PM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
The first known representation of a living Neanderthal appeared in Harper's Weekly today in 1873. #sciart www.lindahall.org/experience/d...
A black-and-white 19th-century illustration titled "The Neanderthal Man," showing a rugged, hairy, ape-like man standing barefoot at the entrance of a cave, holding a primitive axe. He is clothed in fur and looking outward. Inside the cave, two wolves or dogs lie resting, and another watches the standing figure. A second human figure lies on the ground, partially covered in animal pelts, appearing to sleep or rest. Scattered bones, weapons, and tools are strewn across the cave floor, contributing to the scene’s primitive and dramatic atmosphere. The rock ceiling of the cave arches overhead. A scanned page from the July 10, 1873 edition of Harper’s Weekly: A Journal of Civilization. The top half features an article titled “The Neanderthal Man,” accompanied by three scientific illustrations of fossil skulls, including views of a Neanderthal and a modern human for comparison. The article is laid out in three columns of dense text. The bottom half of the page is a large, detailed illustration depicting a dramatic, 19th-century imagining of a Neanderthal scene: a muscular, fur-clad man stands at the entrance of a cave holding a stone axe. Behind him, dogs rest near another human figure lying on the ground. Bones, tools, and animal hides litter the cave interior. The caption beneath the image reads “The Neanderthal Man.”
July 19, 2025 at 11:41 AM
fossilhistory.bsky.social
Today in 1864, Thomas Huxley doodled this “ancient ape-man of Gibraltar” while bored in a meeting. It was inspired by the Forbes Quarry skull—a fossil his friend was puzzling over that we’d later recognize as a Neanderthal. #OnThisDay 🏺
A black-and-white sketch of a robust, bearded prehistoric human figure (Neanderthal), shown in profile facing left. The figure is holding a simple stone tool or club in its right hand, with heavy brows and a sloped forehead. Handwritten notes in cursive script surround the figure on the left and right sides. The sketch has a rough, expressive line style.
July 19, 2025 at 8:27 AM