Pithecanthropus (2nd part)

Judging from the remains of plants, including perfectly preserved leaves and even the flowers found in the sediments directly overlying bone-Trinil layer Pithecanthropus lived in the forest, which consisted of trees that now grow in Java, but in a somewhat cooler climate, existing now at an altitude of 600-1 200 m above sea level. In this forest grew citrus and laurel trees, fig trees and other plants of the subtropics. Together with Pithecanthropus in Trinil forest inhabited by many different animals of the southern zone, the bones of which have survived in the same bone-bearing layer. During the excavations found the most horns antelopes and two kinds of deer, as well as teeth and fragments of skulls of wild pigs. There were bones of bulls, rhinos, monkeys, hippos, tapirs. There were also the remains of ancient elephants, close to the ancient European elephant, predator’s leopard and tiger.

It is believed that all these animals, the bones of which were found in sediments Trinil, were killed in a volcanic disaster. During a volcanic eruption, wooded slopes of the hills were covered and burned mass of red-hot volcanic ash. Then rainwater flows laid in loose thicker deep channels, and carried the ashes in the valley Trinil bones of thousands of dead animals, so bone-bearing layer formed Trinil. Something similar took place during a volcanic eruption Kluth in the eastern part of Java in 1852. According to eyewitnesses, the envelope of the volcano most navigable river Bronte is swelled and rose high. In water, it is not less than 25% ash mixed with pumice. The color of water was quite black, and she was carrying a lot of felled forest, as well as dead animals, including buffalo, monkeys, turtles, crocodiles, even the tiger that was broken and completely destroyed standing on the bridge the river, the largest of all bridges the island of Java.

Together with the other inhabitants of the rainforest a victim of such a catastrophe in ancient times became, obviously, and Pithecanthropus, the bones of which were found in Trinil. These special conditions, which are associated with Trinil findings as probably finds Pithecanthropus bones and elsewhere in Java, explain why there was not any evidence of the use of Pithecanthropus guns.

If the bones of Pithecanthropus were found in temporary sites, the availability of tools would be very likely. In any case, according to the general level of the physical structure of the Pithecanthropus, it must be assumed that it is already manufacturing tools and used them constantly, including not only wood, but also stone. Indirect evidence to you that Pithecanthropus He produced stone tools are crude products from quartzite found in the south of the island of Java, near Patzhitana, together with the remains of the same animals, the bones of which were found in Trinil one thicker deposits of bones of Pithecanthropus.

One can thus conclude that Pithecanthropus and close to his creatures of the initial period ends in the formation of man. It was, as we have seen, the remote time when our ancestors were gregarious lifestyle and just started to move from the use of ready-made objects to the nature of the production tools.