Tanzania. Ngorongoro footprints’ find officially endorsed as early man pointer

US based Tanzanian Archaeologist, Prof Charles Musiba tells the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Prof Jumanne Maghembe, about the partly exposed hominid footprints at the Laetoli site and how the proposed museum would help protect them from the elements. (Photo by Marc Nkwame)

TANZANIA has officially approved and endorsed the new sets of fresh footprints, imprints believed to belong to earliest human beings who could have walked in Ngorongoro area nearly 4 million years ago.

Natural Resources and Tourism Minister Prof Jumanne Maghembe made the declaration at the Laetoli archaeological site within the Ngorongoro Conservation Area Authority (NCAA) area over the weekend, declaring the new discovery as another milestone in boosting the country’s historical, cultural and science based tourism.

“It places Tanzania at the forefront in human origin research, especially understanding the origin of upright posture and bidela gait through providing the only concrete evidence that our ancestors were fully walking upright 3.7 million years ago,” said Prof Maghembe.

The latest historical hominid discovery is the result of painstaking work by two Tanzanian Scientists, Professor Fidelis Masao, a researcher and senior Lecturer in Archaeology, and his colleague, Dr Elgidius Ichumbaki, from the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM).

Explaining the discovery at the site, Prof Masao explained that, the footprints, located about 60 metres from the site, where similar humanoid prints, which were found by Dr Mary Leakey in 1976, indicate the former existence of other prehistoric animals, including extinct horses (Heparians), bears and dik-dik.

Experts led by a Tanzanian Archaeologist, Prof Charles Musiba, were still working in the area -- this time to trace the hominid footprint and track way -- to see where exactly the people who made them were travelling from and whether there could be more pre-historic human trails. [...] m.dailynews.co.tz

Link 2: Tanzania unveils new discovery of ancient footprints - Xinhua

Tanzania has unveiled new sets of fresh footprints believed to belong to earliest human beings who could have walked in Ngorongoro area in northern Tanzania nearly 4 million years ago...